


He's Only Sleeping

by Out0fMyHead



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: AU, Angst, Drama, F/M, Fluff, Post Hogwarts AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-12
Updated: 2017-08-12
Packaged: 2018-12-14 09:07:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 29,142
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11779917
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Out0fMyHead/pseuds/Out0fMyHead
Summary: Set post war.Snape was saved from the fatal snake's bite much to his dismay, and by the most unlikely of people. Now he can't seem to escape his head and so, trapped inside himself he must listen to Hermione Granger as she visits him daily.Hermione knew the man wanted to die, had seen it in the resignation in his eyes before they'd fluttered closed the first time. Still Madame Pomfrey was a force to be reckoned with and she'd been forced to help save him. Now she feels like she owes it to him to at least help him be comfortable. The medi-witches say he's only sleeping but she thinks there is more to it than that.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

He felt like he was floating, or perhaps drifting, in a pit of unending darkness. He couldn't open his eyes, no matter how he tried. 

He attempted to twitch a finger- nothing. He was growing frustrated and wanted to lash out- he couldn't.

"He's lost too much blood, we won't be able to stabilize him here!" He heard a familiar feminine voice, tinged with desperation like he'd never heard. Of course he would know it anywhere, he'd taught the know-it-all for nearly seven years after all.

"We can't move him, he'll die." Another voice, this one much calmer, Poppy Pomfrey. Well at least those around him were those known to him. Still, he wanted to move, wanted to scream out for them to just let him die.

_Let me go._

"Did you think that perhaps he doesn't want to live?" The first voice came much more quietly, he could hear a softness in the words, compassion. Did she know how he suffered?

Preposterous, it just wasn't possible.

_But what if?_

"You cannot expect me to just let anyone, anyone I could help die!" Poppy sounded appalled, he heard a rustling to his right, or was it his left? He couldn't be sure, he hadn't been sure of anything since the fatal blows from the blasted snake Nagini. He wondered if he was even still in the shrieking shack.

_You should Poppy, this one deserves to die._

He felt something cold at his throat, a spell cast and now he was actually floating. Being levitated no doubt.

"I will keep on the bleeding, you move him. We need to get him to St. Mungo's or he _will_ die." Granger this time, apparently she'd given in to the older witch. It was hardly a shock, Poppy Pomfrey could be quite bull-headed when she wanted something.

_No! Don't!  
_

_Leave me!_

He lost consciousness and somewhere deep inside he hoped it wouldn't return.

 


	2. Days 1 & 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is one of my earliest written works so please, don't be too hard on me lol.
> 
> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_*Day One*_

When next he awoke he still could not move his limbs, his fingers were like lead. He tried to open his eyes but stared into nothing but blackness beneath the lids.

To say he was disappointed was an understatement, he wanted to stay swimming in that darkness, unconscious and un-bothered by those around him. He was world weary and ready to be done.

He sought out his senses, smell was intact and he recognized the sterile smell of St. Mungo's and the sharp smell of something else, citrus maybe? 

He could hear everything around him, even the bustle of medi-witches in other rooms.

To top it all he was almost certain he felt a hand around his, cool, it shook a bit.

"They say you're only sleeping. I really hope they're right, I hope you aren't trapped in there. I tried to make them let you be, Harry..." her voice broke, "Harry told me." Her hand left his.

It was Granger then, sat at his bedside.

"I know you must have wanted to join her, to at last be free of all this." He felt her hair tickle his arm, her forehead lay delicately in the spot her hair had been, it felt oddly like the place in which the dark mark used to rest.

_Then why? Why did you let them trap me?_ He knew it was in vain, she couldn't hear him.

It seemed to be one way, he could hear her but she could not hear him. He sneered inwardly, it was just his luck wasn't it?

"I'm not going to leave you, Professor, I will come every day until you wake up. It's the least I can do, after all you've done for us. Would you like if I bring books? I can read to you." She seemed thoughtful, he could imagine the curious look in her coffee colored eyes.

_Always so curious, aren't you Granger?_

"Of course, Master Nabnier released a new volume. I'm sure you've bought it but have you had time to read it?" Her head pulled up, hair tickled his arm again, her hands didn't move.

He knew if he weren't unconscious she wouldn't dare touch him. Interesting how something so small could change things.

"Visiting hours are over 'Mione." A male voice, Potter? Yes, Potter.

"I know." She sounded broken, one of her hands left his, the other stayed for a moment. "I was only telling Professor Snape I will be back tomorrow." The second hand left and he felt oddly alone.

He heard shuffling and soon there was someone right in his ear, he would have sneered if he could.

"Thank you, Professor." Potter whispered, he wanted to sneer, oh how he wanted to sneer.

"Harry, he's unconscious not dead. There's no need to suffocate the poor man. What he wouldn't like when awake he wouldn't like now." Granger scolded, he would have laughed if he'd been able. Such a wonderful little know-it-all.

"Oh- oh right!" Potter exclaimed and backed away from him. He smirked in his head, he wanted it to show on his face but the lack of reaction told him it did not.

He could hear the boy shuffle away, "I'll be back tomorrow, Professor." Granger's soft voice drifted from somewhere in the distance and he scoffed inwardly.

Soon he was left to his thoughts, and with only his thoughts to occupy him he began to wonder; how long would he be stuck like this?

Exactly how long would he have to listen to Granger's babble, and oh gods, would she be bringing Potter along often? Or worse yet, Weasley? The Golden Trio, the thought made him cringe inwardly, how could they possibly expect him to sit through their ramblings, their babblings?

Oh he could almost hear it inside his head, their jeering as they as around his bedside.

He willed his limbs to move, willed, and willed, and- nothing. He was trapped inside his own body, inside his own head and he was not a fan of the sensation.

He growled inside his head, it seemed to reverberate off the walls of his conscious mind. He would have massaged the bridge of his nose if he were able and instead felt himself thinking of doing it instead.

Not quite sure when it happened he became aware of another voice in the room, a medi-witch who shuffled around him, talking to him as she went- though he couldn't be bothered to actually listen.

Finally, a potion was forced down his throat and as much as he wanted to flail and choke the liquid simply wormed its way down his esophagus and settled heavy in his stomach, cold and foreign.

Oh, he really needed to regain control, and soon.

_*Day Two*_

"We've begun reconstruction of the school." Hermione began.

Severus rolled his eyes internally.

He had to admit though, when she came closer she smelled better today, leading him to believe she had not had a chance to bathe the day before. He was unsure of the time of day and really wanted to know but had no way of asking.

"I hope you don't mind but I went to your personal stores and placed some preservation charms on them, it took some time because _someone_ is so incredibly paranoid about others getting into his stores." He could hear the chair beside him scrape across the floor as she came to sit directly beside him, her hands coming up to hold his.

He smirked inwardly.

_I wouldn't be paranoid Ms. Granger, if someone had not stolen from my personal stores to create a polyjuice potion they were ill-equipped to prepare._ Again, she couldn't hear him but it didn't matter, it felt good to be snide in his head, even if he couldn't do it aloud.

He was impressed, he'd cast those wards specifically to keep students out. Of course then again she was the brightest witch of her age.

He was relieved to know all of his hard work, all of those potions and herbs would be preserved for future use as well. He'd hate for all of that time, all of that dedication to be lost forever.

Her hands held his gently, tingles were racing up and down his arm in an annoying pattern. He wanted to twitch away, he didn't like it.

"Hogwarts is coming along well, we've already managed to rebuild the entrance, of course magic has sped it along well. I'm not sure if you'd like to know but we lost several in the war," she paused, and sighed. "Okay, you probably don't need to know that. I wonder, would you like to know what time and day it is?"

_Oh finally, yes, now if you will, hurry girl._

"You know I can almost hear your sarcasm." She sighed, she sounded tired, he wondered how much sleep she was getting. "It is three days after the war, Voldemort," he flinched inwardly, "is gone."

_What time is it, you insufferable girl? I know the day! Now the time!_ He was getting frustrated, her thumb rubbed soothing circles on the back of his hand he thought for a moment she may be able to tell what he was feeling. Of course that would be incredibly improbable.

Nothing of course, was impossible- he'd proven that just by still being here, by being alive, even if he couldn't move or speak.

Hermione was working on a way to get inside the man's head but until then he would just have to listen to her babble. She'd helped some with the re-construction efforts on the school before she'd slipped up to the library to 'borrow' a few books earlier that same day.

Her ultimate goal was to find her way into the Professor's mind and ensure he was not trapped, if he was she would then be able to work with him to find a way to get him out.

If he was not there, however, she had every intention of telling the medi-witches they needed to let him go, stop force feeding him the potions that kept him alive while he was in this state and let him drift away.

She shivered, of course she didn't want to think that way, it was appalling- but all the man had been through troubled her, he deserved his peaceful end if it was his time.

Severus wanted to groan when the girl began to read to him but forced himself to listen for a moment, she was only half-reading aloud for his benefit. In reality she was trying to find a way to get inside his head, to communicate with him.

He could have applauded her as she skimmed over the passages and read aloud points she thought were of interest.

_There's our intelligent little know-it-all always thinking ahead aren't we, always one step ahead of the rest._

He sighed internally, well, at least if his well-being was going to be in someone's hands it would be hers, they were much more capable than any other he could think of. Even Poppy would not have thought to try to get into his head so quickly.

 


	3. Days 3 & 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_*Day 3*_

"This says that if I want to be in your head I'm going to need to understand you." He could almost sense Granger's raised eyebrow as she spoke. She sounded incredibly skeptical, which was actually a good representation of how he felt.

 _Because that will be incredibly simple._ He thought, he imagined Granger would be thinking the same thing. He could picture her eyebrows furrowing as she stared down at the words in whatever book she was reading.

"I don't think that is really going to be possible." She sounded lost in thought, he could almost feel her eyes burning into him.

"Well, we should probably start with the things I already know about you and try to work out how to reach a solution." She sounded resolved, her voice was annoyingly upbeat and- gods how he wanted to roll his eyes at her. She was right however, it would most likely be best to start at the bottom.

 _Yes, yes, Ms. Granger, let us get on with the suffering the shall we?_ He sneered internally. Her hands fluttered around his own limp left hand.

He wanted to scold her into being still.

Finally, she settled and he could imagine her tongue flicking out to lick her lips before she began to speak, an annoying habit he'd noticed when she'd been preparing to answer a question in class. A very useful tick because he could often dodge her all together when he caught that slight flick of her tongue or the twitch of her lips just seconds before her hand shot up into the air.

"Okay, let's see then." He could hear more shuffling, he wondered what she was doing but, if it was anything interesting she gave no indication.  
"Well, I'm going to be blunt Professor, you're not going to like a lot of things I'm going to say about you. If they're true or not, I don't know and unfortunately- because you can't move..."

 _Thank you for the reminder._ He interrupted in his head.

Her speech did not pause and he was again reminded that she couldn't hear him. "...you won't be able to tell me how accurate these things are, I'm going to take down the list as I name them off and then I'll present them to Madame Pomfrey and Headmistress McGonagall, they're the only two I can think of who know you well enough- with Professor Dumbledore gone." Her voice sounded sad for a moment and she seemed to pause as if she thought he could voice his approval.

 _Which obviously is not the case, foolish witch._ He grumbled in his head, she was beginning to work his nerves again- and so early in her visit at that.

"Okay, you're haughty, impatient, broody, and dark." She began, he flinched a bit internally at each descriptor. He would never deny their truth, though at times he thought that maybe it should not have been so- perhaps if things had turned out differently.

_Lily._

He was back to miserable, the dunderhead simply powered on. Every bit the little Gryffindor he knew her to be.

"Sarcastic, impatient..." _You said that already, girl._ "...bitter, suspicious, deceptive."

She paused as if in thought and he took it as a bit of a reprieve, as it was he wanted to spell her mouth closed.

 _Too bad you can't wave your wand hand, unlucky sod._ He grumbled at himself and tried to ignore the thumb that had begun drawing circles on the back of his hand. The tingling sensations began again, shooting up and down his arm in that same, familiar infuriating pattern.

He wanted to scream at her to stop, though it wasn't likely _that_ would be happening any time soon.

Her tone changed, "You're also loyal, ingenious, brave, deep, you have a natural proficiency for potions."

It was a change he didn't like, it sounded almost like she admired him.

 _Do not admire me Granger, I am the worst of people. The most loathsome man you shall ever lay eyes on and you would do well to remember it._ He growled in his head, he willed her to hear him, to stop whatever that tone was before it could even begin.

Unfortunately, he was trapped in his- in his opinion- useless body. It was the most frustrating thing to tell your arms to move and receive no result.

Her increasingly familiar scent of citrus and vanilla came closer, he could smell the remnants of an old tome- presumably the one she had been reading from- drifting off of her. It seemed to cling to her hair and skin as if she never put the thing down.

Knowing her, she did not.

"I'm not sure what else you are." She sighed and her breath washed over him, pumpkin juice. He hated pumpkin juice- and what he wouldn't give for one- if only to be able to drink the damned thing.

She seemed lost in thought for a moment, he imagined he could hear the gears turning in her head as she thought. It was impressive, the way her mind went from one conclusion to another, discarding those that made little sense in favor of those that made more.

"Oh! OH!" She snapped and the chair made his skin crawl as it screeched backwards and away from him, he could feel the rush of air and smell the stirred scents of her as she stood abruptly.  
"Of course!" He could hear her fist hit her hand.

 _Would you like to share your revelation with the rest of the class, Ms. Granger?_ He hissed in his head, he wanted to shake the girl- she'd obviously come up with something that made sense.

Instead, he was left disappointed when she called out, "Harry! Harry?" He heard the boy shuffle in and imagined himself grimacing. He hoped beyond hope the look came over his face.  
"Will you sit with Professor Snape and have a chat with him. I'll be back in a moment!" She exclaimed, the boy didn't even have a chance to respond before she was rushing from the room in a flurry of excitement- talking to herself all the while in hushed whispers.

"So," He could just imagine the boy standing awkwardly in the doorway, he wanted to shoo him away, the sooner the better, "you and my mum huh?"

 _Of course, that is what you would lead with Potter, nothing but the most thoughtful of conversation from you._ He sneered in his head and chose to pretend not to be able to hear the boy until visiting hours were finally over.

He was relieved for the boy to be gone but his stomach felt heavy that the other had not returned. He chalked the sensation up to the potion they forced down his gullet every evening and chose not to dwell on it.

He couldn't decide whether it was wise or not to do so however.

ღ

_*Day Four*_

_Woman, stop your incessant humming before I hex you into silence._ Severus was in a right foul mood the morning of his fourth day of- what he began to think of as- incarceration.

He willed wandless, wordless magic to come to his aid in stopping the medi-witch from humming but it was of no use. She would not- could not- be stopped and it was driving him absolutely mad.

This was not his first visit from this nurse but he implored Merlin, with everything that he was or had been, to free him of the incessant humming.

"He hates that." He heard a very frank voice and, in his own odd, internal smirking way, rejoiced at the arrival of Granger.

The relentless humming stopped immediately and the medi-witch clicked her tongue in the most obnoxious manner. He wanted the woman gone- forever preferably- but at least until the next day if he couldn't have the former.

"And how exactly do you know? I have worked with patients like him for years, the noise helps them." She replied haughtily, he thought she sounded quite young and wondered if by years she meant one- perhaps two.

"Of course, I'm sure you know what the typical patient prefers," Hermione's voice was biting and dripped a bit of sarcasm, something he'd never heard from the girl. It made his leaden stomach lurch in an odd manner, stirring the cold potion that seemed to remain forever in his gut- now if he could only get her to stay when the awful evening witch was shoving that potion down his throat, " _this patient_ however, is quite different. He will want nothing to do with your cheerful humming, in fact all of the flowers around this room would probably have him sneering in sheer disgust."

He cocked what he was coming to think of as his 'inside eyebrow'. He could imagine the smart little Granger girl in her black robes stood with her hands on her hips, frizzy hair framing her face and buck teeth coming from her mouth just a bit too far.

Of course, when he considered it, that wasn't really the image he should see when he thought of her anymore. She was not that eleven-year-old little know-it-all any more, she was an adult know-it-all now- not that she'd grown much taller over the years.

He 'inside smirked' at his internal jab and tried to picture her as she would be now.

All that came to mind was the 'mudblood' brand carved viciously into her forearm and that was all it took for him to give up on imagining her at all.

He should have known better anyway.

"I hardly think _you_ would understand the delicate work of a medi-witch. You became death when you pursued the war."

Severus wanted to scoff, and he did inside, still though he wanted nothing more than for the young witch to hear said scoff.

It was absurd to think Granger had become death, she'd done what she'd had to do, what needed to be done to ensure the freedom and lives of those she cared for.

He 'inside flinched'- and yes, he was aware he needed to stop adding 'inside' to everything, why was he defending her?

"Oh, and you would have preferred to be under the hold of Voldemort?" Granger questioned, he imagined that same frizzy little girl from earlier- she just wouldn't go away- crossing her arms across her chest and fixing the woman in a very belittling look. One he'd often seen her give Potter and Weasley when they did something she found particularly stupid.  
"Tell me, what is your blood status?" Her voice bit hard enough to draw blood, he suspected, and he swore he could feel the crackle of magic in the room, was Granger really that upset by the cocky medi-witch?

"I don't think that is any of _your_ business." The witch huffed and he could hear her shoes as she stormed from the room. A chair screeched up beside his bed and he felt hands on his- hands that were beginning to grow uncomfortably familiar.

It wouldn't do, he needed to find a way to get her to stop doing _that_ , soon.

"She should leave you alone now, I'm fairly certain I offended her enough to request not to be assigned your care again." He 'inside smirked' and tried not to acknowledge how tired she sounded.

He couldn't help however, wondering why she sounded so utterly exhausted today when she'd seemed so vibrant the day before.

"We've rebuilt quite a lot of the school. I know it is going to annoy you but I don't want to talk about yesterday." He assumed this meant that whatever brilliant idea she thought she'd had had turned out to be quite the opposite, she was lucky he couldn't say anything about it.

He certainly would if he could, it would be against his very character not to.

 _Please do not blather on as you did the first day or I will be forced to move simply so that I may destroy any chances of hearing you._ He huffed dramatically in his head.

Still he was subjected to hours of her babble and before he knew it she was joined by Weasley.

Weasley who asked her on a date- in his room no less.

"I'm sorry, I can't, I just have too much going on." She'd said and he could feel her hair on his arm as her head tilted down.

The Weasley boy had stormed from the room and Severus had felt overall just very uncomfortable.

It was after-all, nowhere near his area of expertise.

Granger had huffed an exhausted, almost hysterical lone laugh and he heard her chair scoot back against the marble floors.

"I'm sorry you had to listen to that Professor." He could've sworn he felt moisture hit his arm before she was gone.

He resolved to forget the entire incident and go on as if it had never happened.

He also found himself secretly waiting with baited breath for Granger's return. She was the only _nearly_ tolerable person he had around.


	4. Days 5 & 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 5_

Hermione stood and wiped the sweat from her forehead, a deep breath huffed from her chest and she stared up into the sky. She'd been shrinking stones and moving them for more than two hours and despite herself she was growing weary, her concentration making the flicks of her wand just a bit messier than they ought to be.

This of course made the stones she was picking up and moving progressively larger.

Finally, giving in to the ache in her muscles she fell back onto a particularly large chunk of stone from one of the obliterated castle walls. There was a pleasant breeze and she was glad for it, it wasn't as if the school's location in Scottland had ever been particularly hot but still she was feeling the effects of her exertion.

She wondered for a moment how Professor Snape was doing as she took a large drink of water brought to her by a house elf, she thanked it politely before watching as it disappeared into thin air.

Ron hadn't spoken to her since their little conversation in the Professor's hospital room the day before and she was certain that it had been an all-around uncomfortable experience.

There _had been_ a time when she would have jumped at the opportunity to have a proper date with Ron. A time when she would have loved nothing more than to spend a romantic evening with her sometimes hot-tempered best friend.

Unfortunately, that time had passed, and not too long ago if she were being honest with herself. Which she found she did not do all that often anymore.

In fact she found her feelings growing more and more complicated by the day, she was having trouble sorting them at all.

She glanced over at Ginny and Harry who had stopped their own work to take a bit of a break. Their heads were close together, their faces light, little smiles on their lips. She felt a bit of a stab somewhere deep down, she wanted that as well, of course she'd complicated things for herself.

She moved her gaze from the couple in front of her over to Ron who was staring sulkily at the ground as McGonagall spoke to him, no doubt giving him instructions on what he should be doing next.

Her fingers tugged through the curly hair gathered at the nape of her neck and she groaned to herself. She needed to bathe before she went back to the hospital to visit Snape.

She had every intention of keeping the promise she made to herself, and him, that she would be there every day until the day he opened his eyes and stood from his bed or was allowed his eternal rest.

ღ

Severus found himself in the company of his most tolerable medi-witch yet. She spoke little, except to greet him when she'd walked into the room and she hadn't even bothered to ask how he was doing. An obnoxious question he'd found they asked more often than not.

As if he could answer.

"Oh, hello, I can come back when you've finished if you like." Granger's voice met his ears and immediately his ears reacted by listening more closely. He didn't like the reaction he had to her presence but he couldn't deny that she'd been the best company he could have hoped for in the given situation.

"No problem a'all deary, don' worry yer 'ead." The abrupt old witch responded and Severus wanted to groan, so the only problem with her was she spoke like Hagrid, it wasn't the worst fate but he could certainly think of more positive things.

"If you're sure..." She trailed and the witch waved her off again, Granger's usual chair screeched across the floor and he had an internal flinch before she settled in beside him. Her hands found his and he caught himself thinking their warmth was appealing.

 _Absolutely not._ He abolished the thought completely and tried to hone in on what she was saying. It sounded like he was underwater, her words muted by something as she spoke to him.

He couldn't make out exactly what she was saying, her thumb caressed the back of his hand and it was as if he was suddenly brought back from somewhere else and plunged into a bath of cold water, his senses came rushing back.

"I hope you aren't having too terrible of a time." He wasn't sure what she'd said before this but he noticed very quickly how tired her voice sounded, it cracked a bit as she spoke as if she'd been in a screaming match with someone.

He couldn't figure out why he cared but finally settled for believing it was simply because she was the only company he'd had for five days now. It was bound to happen that he would start to notice these things about her.

"I really hope you're actually in there," she whispered, her mouth close to his ear, he felt gooseflesh pop up on his neck but couldn't move to shake it off.

It was annoying.

_You are the only person who would, insane little witch._

"I don't think you're actually just sleeping either though, I think something else is going on." She leaned back and spoke normally now, he heard the medi-witch shuffle out with a chuckle under her breath and wondered what it was directed at.

Hermione flushed and she was glad he couldn't see it.

"I think you're trapped in there, and that if you could move you would." One of her hands was removed and he could feel his hair being pushed back from his face. He wanted so badly to lash out, wanted nothing more than to tell off the girl for touching him.

 _You will receive the worst tongue lashing of your life when I am out of this state._ He seethed internally as her hand came away from him, leaving just one holding his own hand.

"See, when I did that I know if you could you would get up."

 _Clever little witch, pissing me off on purpose._ He felt his blood settle from its raging boil, at least a degree.

"I'm hoping every time I touch you that you will flinch away but you're just not moving. I'm thinking we're going to have to find a mental way to snap you out of this, physical contact isn't working." She trailed a bit in thought and he wondered what she was thinking.

He also found himself torn between wanting her to stop touching him and wanting her to carry on, though he hardly understood why. He told himself it was because it was the only sensation of touch he had and despite it being another person, at least it was something.

It helped him feel alive.

"Oh well, I've brought my copy of _Masterful Potions: A Guide to the One-hundred Most Complicated Potions of Our Time_ , if you'd like I can read it. It is a bit on the bland side at the beginning but soon he begins to talk about all of the ways in which one can maim themselves brewing a potion and I think it would please you to hear." Her hand was removed from his, he didn't like the cold air biting at his skin where her's had once been.

He could hear the pages of a book turning before she began to read, all he could do was lay and listen to her almost lecturing voice as she drifted from page to page.

ღ

_Day 6_

Severus had begun to grow nervous- for reasons he could not fathom- when Granger had not shown up by the second visit of the day from his nurse- the way he'd begun to tell time while trapped with his eyes closed.

 _You're late, Granger._ He hissed in his head when she rushed into the room, a mess of rushed apologies as she slid her chair towards him with an annoying screech.

He 'inside scowled' when she didn't immediately reach out and touch his hand and he wondered just exactly what was wrong with him.

He didn't have much time to think on it as she began to speak rather rapidly however.

"I've found a potion that will work to allow us a mind connection!" She exclaimed, he cocked an 'inside eyebrow' and imagined himself staring at her with a sneer.

_Don't be foolish, there is no such potion and if there was I would certainly know about it._

"It is going to take me about a month to brew and I will have to send Harry to keep you company once a week..." _Just leave me to rot._ "...but if this works, and I'm almost certain it will after all of my research, then I'll be able to find out if you are coherent in there. If you are perhaps we can figure out together why you are stuck. If not I will tell the medi-witches to stop force feeding you that awful life extending draught they've been giving you every night. It keeps you alive until you wake up but if you will never wake up I _will_ stop them at once."

He was impressed with her conviction to help him but did not hold his breath. If there were such a potion as one to give them a mind link he would have known about it, he didn't and therefore it could not possibly exist.

"Harry has agreed to sit with you every Thursday..." _Oh please just stop the potion now, there is no need to force me to suffer more than I already do._ "...I hope you're not being over dramatic in there. It wouldn't do to leave you alone to rot in your own mind for a day every week and the medi-witches are hardly interested in talking to you. They say it feels like you're glaring at them even though you're asleep." She said matter-of-factly. He could feel the warmth of her hand flutter past his and he willed his hand to twitch up and grab hers.

 _Stop talking and just touch me! Insufferable girl!_ He wasn't sure where that outburst had come from but he was entirely glad she could not hear him. Still he felt immense relief when her much smaller hand folded warmly over his.

He would've sighed in embarrassing relief if he could it felt so good to feel something other than the cold air and harsh sheets.

"I told myself I would stop touching you, there is no reason as it did not have the desired effect but..." _Don't overthink it, it doesn't mean anything._ "...I guess it feels nice to touch someone and know they expect nothing to come of it." She sighed, he wondered what she meant but once again chose not to dwell on it.

It seemed he was choosing not to dwell on quite a lot as of late.

ღ

The end of visiting hours came all too soon, due to her tardiness earlier in the day and she was ushered from the room by the medi-witch, they said only family could be in the room after visiting hours and Hermione was obviously not family.

She'd sighed and reluctantly conceded before she made her way- via floo- to the little flat she'd found herself in London. It was a ratty little place from the outside but once you made it inside the place- which was the only part she ever had to look at as she traveled via floo and apparition, it was lovely.

She had set up her own little library instead of using the main room as a sitting room. The walls were lined with dark wood shelves and piled to the brim with books. There was a comfortable chair and settee with a little table between them for drinks. She disliked the artificial lighting she'd grown up with in the muggle world an opted for well-placed candles that lit the room with the gentle flicker she'd grown accustomed to at Hogwarts.

She did not have a refrigerator and there were no muggle appliances in her home as magic directly interfered with their use- she preferred her wards to the use of muggle technology- she did however have magically cooled cabinets that held barely a stitch of food.

To the left, down a stubby little hall- if it could be called that- there were two rooms, one on either side of the 'hall', one was the door to her bedroom, the other to a bathroom. Both were colored a shade of grey she considered pretty and were quite minimalist if one did not consider the books that lay scattered about either room.

Her muscles ached from a long day and so she chose the bathing room as the first room on her agenda.

It wasn't until she'd bundled her curly hair at the nape of her neck and slipped into a warm bath that she finally relaxed and let out the sigh she'd held in for the day.

She had a problem, a big problem, and she hadn't quite figured out how to deal with it yet.

She wasn't quite sure just how she was going to get the ingredients for the potions she'd found, she just knew she had to.

She also knew just who she had to get in touch with to acquire the black market herbs and she knew he would be none too pleased to help her, not only because she'd punched him in the face and they'd never quite seen eye-to-eye. No, she knew he was trying to get his act together and she would be putting that in danger by asking him for help.

She only hoped he would be willing to help his head-of-house, even if it meant risking his new leaf.

She slipped lower into the tub with a groan and dug the heels of her palms into her eyes rather aggressively.

No wonder she couldn't get a boyfriend.  
She was too busy trying to save the world, one needy male at a time.

 


	5. Days 7 & 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 7_

"Honestly Harry, you can't just stare at him the entire time." Snape found himself extraordinarily annoyed with his present situation.

Not only had Potter himself arrived to keep him company, he was also forced to listen to the little Weasley girl lecture him.

And oh, did she lecture well, just like her mother Molly. He rolled his 'inside eyes' and waited with baited breath for visiting hours to end. If only Granger had told him the first Thursday she would be gone would be the day after she informed him she would be absent, he would have tried harder to choke on the awful potion they shoved down his throat.

 _Leave him to his silence, it is much better than having to listen to him ramble._ He sneered.

"What am I supposed to say to him Gin?" The young man sounded exasperated, at least that gave Severus some pleasure. His voice turned mocking, "Sorry, I know you were in love with my mum and I'm a direct representation of what you didn't get but how are you doing today? Let me talk to you while you lay there without the ability to do anything about it." He finished in a huff.

Severus 'inside smirked' when he heard the distinct sound of skin on skin as Ginny Weasley smacked the boy who lived, if only he'd had the pleasure of seeing the wince.

"You can't talk about that either! Why are you trying to upset him?" The redheaded witch hissed and he imagined Potter looked quite a bit like a kicked puppy. At least he hoped he did.

Honestly though Severus didn't care, he'd paid his debt- to Lily, to Dumbledore, to everyone. Excepting perhaps Granger and Poppy he owed nothing to anyone.

And that was one thing he was certainly sure of, he definitely liked owing something only to the two people most unlikely to want something from him in return.

"What do you want me to talk about then?!" Potter demanded exasperatedly.

"I don't know, read him a book!" Weasley suggested.

"Out both of you, maybe I should just let him rot in his own head when I can't be here." The scolding voice of Granger met his ears and it was the most wonderful sound- not that he'd ever admit it out loud.

 _This better mean I'm free of Potter and Weasley, even your rambling is better than their bickering. Like they've already been married for years! It is ridiculous and I can't believe you'd allow me to suffer through this!_ He knew she couldn't hear him, still, it made him feel better to rant and rave, he often did it at the nurses when they tottered over him with their annoying conversations.

He honestly did not care who was marrying whose niece.

He really did want to choke on that potion most nights.

Severus was drawn from his thoughts when Granger spoke again.

"Someone else is coming to see you." he could hear Potter and Weasley shuffle from the room and down the hall, bickering until they faded out of range. "If there is any, I mean any chance at all you're going to wake up without my help then please, _please do it now_." She implored, her hands wrapped around his and the skin on skin was fantastic.

He wasn't sure he could make it a day without her skin on his. He was going to have to go a week without it soon though. _Must be punishment for being such a bastard all my life._

"Godfather." The name was curt and the voice un-mistakeable. Draco, in his hospital room, the boy who had the good sense not to visit him at all in this state.

 _Must you expose to me to everyone Granger?_ He glowered. _Must even those most important, most respectful of me see me in this awful state?_

Her hands left his and it made him even angrier, as if she could hear him scolding her and was retreating from him, even though he knew this wasn't the case.

Draco came close enough he could almost feel he boy- no- man's body heat. He constantly had to remind himself that these were no longer children. No longer his students, they were grown, presumably moving into their apprenticeships and taking jobs.

"Granger- er- Hermione," Severus assumed she'd bullied him into being on a first name basis, "she asked me for some help. I didn't necessarily want to be here, I know how you feel about being viewed as weak." He felt a hand hover over his and withdraw quickly, it was silent for a moment.

"He wanted to see you before he risks his name. Wanted to know that you actually looked alive." Granger finished for the blonde.

 _Risks his name how?_ Severus' 'inside eyes' narrowed hard, he imagined the two standing beside him, adults now but shrinking under his harsh gaze. He would throttle them if they meant what he thought.

"The ingredients she needs are _difficult_ to acquire." _The black market then._

"He's the only person I know with access, it is that or wait years for me to run down the ingredients on any number of continents myself. Then, still the means for acquiring them..." She trailed, she sounded a bit green to Severus and he knew what that meant.

 _Do. Not. Do. It._ It was useless, they couldn't hear him and even if they did it wouldn't stop them, two of the most stubborn headed students he'd ever had.

No, he knew Granger was going to get herself into a lot of trouble- and now she was taking his godson down with her.

 _When I can move, you will both suffer for this decision_. He swore to himself, glaring at the little images of them he'd conjured up in his mind.

ღ

_Day 8_

Hermione Granger was not a stupid girl, she knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that what she was doing was dangerous. She was also very aware that she needed to do it to save Severus Snape.

Something she found herself wanting to do more and more every day. She was tortured by the image of him lying in that bed, his eyes closed, his face drawn. He was growing more and more gaunt by the day and it pained her.

She couldn't pin-point exactly why it pained her but it certainly did.

Draco was off in a much seedier section of Diagon Alley than Hermione had the gall to enter. She knew they would chew her up and spit her out there, one of the Golden Trio.

It wouldn't do to die before she could fix Snape and so she sat, every so often checking the time so that she could visit Snape when hours began.

The book in her lap hardly held her attention as she fought her tired eyes, she considered for a moment sleeping before deciding against it and returning her attention back to the lines in the book.

Aside from trying to save the world one needy man at a time- this time Severus Snape- she had been mentoring under Professor McGonagall so that she could take over the position of Transfiguration Professor for her, a task that took all of her morning hours.

When she finished with McGonagall she joined Professor Snape at St. Mungo's for the four hours from one until five. When she finished there she was often invited to dinner by someone or another- a good thing too because she _never_ had food in her flat. Nor did she ever remember to go buy food.

After her dinner with friends or family she worked on researching ways to find out if Snape was alive inside himself or if he was brain dead- for lack of a better term. Some evenings she didn't finish her research until it was almost time to be up and do it all again.

Last night had been one of those evenings and it was really beginning to weigh on her. Worse than when she'd used the time turner to attend more classes than she probably should have.

She smirked at the memory and stifled a second yawn. She'd always been a bit of an overachiever she supposed, but with friends like Harry Potter and Ron Weasley how could she have survived if she was anything but?

She wouldn't have, and she had a sinking suspicion they wouldn't have either. She heaved a breath at the thought of the other two needy men in her life and abandoned the book to massage her temple.

She would be back to helping with reconstruction on the school the next day and was hardly fit for it. Ron still hadn't talked to her either.

She checked the time again and sighed to herself, it was time to go visit with Professor Snape and hope- as she did every time- that he would move.

Of course he never did, not even so much as a scowl.

After visiting hours she had a dinner planned with Draco and then she would begin work on the potion. She knew Snape either knew about the potion and couldn't relay it, or, the more likely answer, that he did not know about it and believed she was daft for thinking something like that would work.

Well, it didn't matter, she was going to try until she figured it out. There wasn't much he could do to stop her after all.

She smirked at the thought and stretched her way up out of her comfortable chair. She winced when a few of her joints popped from being sedentary and wiggled a bit more to work out any kinks.

ღ

Hermione watched the rise and fall of Snape's chest for several minutes in thought before she drug her chair up to his bedside and fell into it beside him.

"I'm sorry I pulled Draco into this." She sounded genuine.

Severus 'inside sneered'. _If you were sorry you wouldn't have done it to begin with._

"I know you don't believe me, but- I really needed his help." He felt her forehead fall gently onto his arm. She assumed he was seething on the inside- not far from the truth.

He felt himself soften a bit, this was a girl who was doing everything in her power to help him. He felt the unfamiliar urge to comfort her but quickly rolled his 'inside eyes'.

He listened to her smooth breathing for a few minutes before coming to the realization that she had fallen asleep.

This was confirmed when her face snuggled into the space between the flesh of his arm and his hip. Her breath fell in even puffs across his skin and she sighed. Chills raced up and down his arm and side and he worried what it meant.

 


	6. Days 9 & 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 9_

Hermione was abuzz with excitement, she hadn't slept as well as she'd done the day before in what felt like a year- and may well have been. She realized that Snape was probably none-too-pleased with her but she could hardly find it in her to care as she went through her reconstruction of the school with a silly little smile stuck on her face.

She was glad the Potions Master couldn't see it to mock her for her foolishness.

It was worse that she knew she was being foolish, how did one even develop feelings for a man in a seemingly permanent sleep-like state?

It was ridiculous, she felt ridiculous.

Oh and not just any man, her grumpy Potions Professor who had tormented them all throughout her schooling.

She sucked in a deep breath when the stone she'd been levitating in front of her fell, mere inches from her foot. She blushed bright red in embarrassment at her gawking former classmates.

"What are you lot staring at?" Ron had come to her rescue, despite his irritation and she winced.  
"Well, get on with it." He waved his hands and almost laughed when everyone got back to work. The younger students especially held him in high regard for his part in the war.

No one argued with the golden trio anymore. Not that Hermione particularly liked the fact.

"Thank you, Ronald." She nearly whispered in her shame. How could she think she had feelings for her snarky Potions Professor and completely neglect the feelings she'd once had for _him?_ What was wrong with her?

"No problem, 'Mione. Should probably be getting to the greasy git now at any rate, right?" He looked so put out and she wanted to say no, wanted to salvage what was left of their relationship.

"I made a promise." Her voice didn't raise but she did look into his face, not backing down, she was not one to go back on her word, Ron and Harry should know that best of all.

"Right." His voice was curt as he turned on his heel and marched away from her. She wondered if things would ever go back to normal for them.

She just needed to get Snape awake so he could destroy this image she'd painted of him in her head, then she could move on with Ron and everything would be okay.

At least, she hoped it would.

ღ

 _About time you made it._ Severus kept his well-practiced impatience, even on the inside. Granger tugged her chair forward and sat without speaking for a few moments.

"Pardon my being blunt Professor but this stinks." She hummed out, her breath closer to his face than he expected. Sweet mint danced across his lips and, gods, he willed himself to move.

It wasn't happening however.

 _I am not a muggle therapist Granger, you would be best not to begin pouring your heart out to me._ He sneered, willed her to hear him. Of course she didn't, his skin prickled with his irritation.

"Ron, he was so perfect for me, now it's just all so messed up."

He 'inside scoffed', perhaps the girl wasn't so bright if she thought a dunderhead like Ronald Weasley was the perfect man for her. His skin prickled more and he willed the sensation down.

Her hands fell on his and he reveled in the contact. He really needed to stop this, to quell the increasingly frustrating sensations that came with her touch.

Hermione sighed to herself, her breath fell across his face again and he wondered just how close she was.

Too close, no doubt.

Hermione lay her head down beside his and tried to will her self-control into being. She knew she could stop herself, she just wasn't quite sure she wanted to anymore.

Hair tickled his cheek and he inhaled the scent of her, vanilla and citrus, so lovely, feminine. That faint smell of old book tickled just at the edge. He wanted to bury his face in her hair.

 _Get a grip on yourself man! She was only just recently your student!_ He demanded of himself, he couldn't deny his attraction to her, body and brain.

Especially brain, she was tantalizingly intelligent. Something he rarely found in the women who would come near him. Never very intelligent, rarely lovely, rarely _sane_.

He wouldn't be a man if he couldn't acknowledge that she was what he wanted.

The forbidden fruit as it was.

Suddenly, very abruptly, she sat up and all of her scent, her warmth, was pulled away from him.

He 'inside groaned' but came to rapt attention when he heard a throat clear from what he assumed was the doorway. He hadn't heard the fireplace flare with the woosh of someone entering.

"I'll um, give you two some privacy." Granger sounded embarrassed as her chair slid back against the floor and she gripped his hand one last time, giving a comforting squeeze before she left him.

"Hello Severus." He knew immediately why the young witch sounded embarrassed when Minerva came to his bedside, her voice washed over him. It was her first time visiting him and he wondered why she'd come. He didn't have to guess for long however as she slid into Hermione's chair- much more quietly- and gripped his hand in her own.

Its warmth wasn't the same, he found it brought him not nearly so much comfort as the younger witch's had.

"We need to talk about Miss Granger."

 _Of course we do,_ he sneered, _I hope you don't think I can do away with her, daft woman, I cannot so much as twitch a finger._

ღ

_Day 10_

Hermione leaned over her potion, brow furrowed as it boiled gently in the cauldron. She'd stirred clockwise every thirty minutes for the past five hours and finally something was beginning to happen.

The potion's original color of deep blue was beginning to turn an almost violent green. She was right on track, Draco leaned against the wall beside her, his arms crossed across his chest as he observed her working.

He'd insisted on staying after he'd delivered the ingredients, feeling it was his right. She'd hardly been able to argue of course, it was his Godfather she was trying to save, and he had been the one to risk his name- that had been barely hanging on by a thread since the war- to get the ingredients she needed.

"Is it meant to smell like that?" His nose wrinkled as he watched the Gryffindor closely. He'd been quite adept at potions but was hardly the genius she'd been, even he had to admit to that.

"The recipe says it should smell like sulfur, so yes, I would say so." She'd been holding her breath until she could back away from the cauldron and she regretted opening her mouth to speak. She could taste the awful scent and recoiled a bit, her gag reflex immediately attempted to rear its ugly head.

She forced down the sensation and joined Draco against the wall of her flat.

His fiancé was at work and he had little to do during the days, not having decided exactly what career path he would pursue.

"Do you really think it will work?" He questioned, gray eyes boring into her as she turned her head to face him, wild curls fell in her face and she brushed them back irritably.

"I hope so, I can't imagine being stuck alive if I were brain dead. I would hope someone would end my suffering. I mean- he was a git don't get me wrong- but I really want him to be okay. I don't know, I just hope I can figure out how to help him." She shrugged, Draco appraised her from the corner of his eye. She'd grown quite a lot, not necessarily in height- though of course she was taller than she'd been at eleven. No, her features were much softer, more feminine, she'd mostly grown into her teeth and her wild hair almost seemed to suit her now, tighter curls and less frizz.

He assumed she'd learned to work with the curls instead of trying to fight them.

She'd matured a lot as well, she'd always been mature of course, but now, now she'd even been able to put aside their differences and work with _him_ , she cared about the state of their snarky Potions Master as well.

It was interesting to observe the little changes, he shook himself from his reverie and watched as she again went to stare into the potion.

"What will you do when you're done saving the world?" He wondered aloud, grey eyes locked onto her back, his arms crossed lazily across his chest.

"I hardly think I have anything to worry about there, when will the world ever be completely saved?" She laughed at herself and shook her head, he smirked and opened his mouth to speak again but thought better of it and closed it again.

ღ

She smelled like a potion, strong and acrid, when she entered his room again. He wondered if her eyes watered at the smell as his always had.

He also caught that this meant she had found something she thought would work. Otherwise she would not be brewing.

 _About time you arrived Granger, how dare you abandon me with Minerva yesterday._ He growled as her chair slid up to his bed side, he could smell the undertones of her citrus and vanilla scent and took comfort in her hands closing over his.

Severus toyed with the idea that her potion may just work for a second before shrugging it off internally.

"I'm exhausted today, I thought we may read something different." He wondered at what she meant but was not forced to wonder long as he heard the ruffle of pages.

When she began to read he immediately recognized the book _The Toadstool Tales_ by Beatrix Bloxam, a children's book he'd read to Draco several times when he'd babysat for Narcissa and Lucius. It was odd to him that she would bring a children's book but tried not to dwell on the fact as he let her soft voice wash over him.

Her body heat drifted across him from his left side as read, his skin prickled at her voice, her breath. He wanted so badly to move. To stop the sensations she was causing to overtake him.

Unfortunately, he couldn't.

When finally she'd finished reading he could hear her put the book away and grimaced internally as her motions stirred her soft feminine scent in the air again.

He felt something on his hand again, though this time it was clearly not the soft skin of her palm. Instead it was something softer, something fuller.

Hermione gasped and pulled her lips away from his hand immediately, her own hand came up to slap over her mouth as she stared at his unmoving form in horror.

 _What in Merlin's name is going on with you girl?_ He demanded internally.

"Oh my!" She sounded thoroughly distraught, he forced back the image of her lips on his hand, there had to be another explanation. "I'm so sorry Professor!" Her chair screeched backwards harshly and he could hear the sounds of her as she fled the room.

A very confused Severus Snape left in her wake.


	7. Days 39 & 40

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 39_

Hermione slid exhaustedly into her bed, her mind racing as she considered everything that had happened over the last month.

Reconstruction of Hogwarts had been completed, much to her relief she would no longer need to join early morning and late night crews to help clear the grounds and rebuild the castle. It had been a massive effort with so many alumni and current students working to put the school back together for the coming year.

She'd also completed her NEWTs during her time apprenticing under Professor McGonagall and was considered nearly ready for the coming school year. She would be teaching- with supervision- the first and second years for the first half of the year. If all went well she would take over as the Transfiguration Professor for all of the years after Christmas break and would be their official Professor for as long as she chose to maintain the position.

She still visited Snape every day, though she no longer called him by Professor. She'd also managed not to have any more embarrassing moments with his still form.

Hermione had however thought she'd felt him twitch a few times.

Of course she chalked this up to wishful thinking.

Her potion was ready in the sitting room/library, she'd placed it into vials for visiting hours the next day and her nerves had her practically dancing.

She knew he was going to hate her when he found out what she had to do to make it work. She only hoped he'd forgive her in the end.

Draco sucked a deep breath from the floor and she rolled her eyes. A lot had changed in that department over the course of the last month.

He'd left Astoria for reasons that were beyond her comprehension- though she suspected it had something to do with Ginny, who had also been spending quite a lot of time in her flat- and insisted on sleeping on her floor. It was odd how quickly she'd come to consider him a friend and ally, it had taken him little begging at all for her to agree to giving him a pallet in her floor.

She pinched the bridge of her nose, unwilling to over-think anything but unable to stop as her mind raced from one topic to another.

The thought she continually came back to however was the kiss, the kiss she would be forced to give her former Professor, the snarkiest man she'd ever met- the next day! Her stomach churned with the thought and she slammed her head back into the pillow rather forcefully.

Draco sucked another breath but didn't awaken and she was glad for it. She'd hate to have to try to explain herself, the man who'd once been her bitter enemy already teased her mercilessly.

Liked to say she had a crush on Snape, even though he couldn't talk.

Thought it was a hilarious joke.

She did not agree, she worried a bit at the truth to the words but tried hard not to dwell.

Of course, her mind wouldn't let her stop dwelling, all she did was dwell, dwell, dwell.

Frankly she was tired of it.

She balled her sheets in her fists and then, almost as if an afterthought, ripped the pillow from beneath her head. In one smooth motion she flung it hard at Draco's face and he woke with a start, blonde hair uncharacteristically wild on top of his head.

"What the bloody hell was that for, Mione!?" He nearly screeched, eyes wide and confused.

"If I don't get to sleep, neither do you." She smirked and he grumbled a bit but climbed from the floor to sit on the edge of her bed.

"Take a potion or something would you? Nutter." He muttered the last part and she just shook her head and snorted a laugh.

"No, you can just stay up and talk to me."

He cocked an eyebrow, "And if I don't want to?"

"Well, you're not going back to sleep." She shrugged, he sighed and leaned over the edge of the bed to pull out a game of Wizard's Chess they'd left when last she couldn't sleep.

She still thought the game excessively violent, even a bit archaic but shrugged as the board balanced precariously between them. She squinted in concentration when he began where they'd left off- still though- she felt the peace that came with being with a friend, and her mind was finally distracted from the next day- and what she would have to do.

ღ

_Day 40_

To say that Hermione had been unable to focus in her usual lessons with Minerva would be a grievous understatement. Every nerve ending in her body had been abuzz every time she heard the tinkle of vials as they tapped together in her robe pocket. She squinted and tried to focus on the lesson but only managed to grow frustrated when her mind would drown out the words her former Professor said to her.

She sucked in a deep breath when it was time to leave and barely spoke to Minerva as she fled the castle and made her way to her flat. Once there she shook her head at Draco and Ginny sat on her little settee, engaged in a deep conversation.

Hadn't it only been a short while ago Ginny had looked at Harry with that look?

 _Oh well, she's a smart girl, knows what she's doing._ Hermione assured herself with a shrug and with a fleeting hello hustled herself into her claw-footed tub for a bath.

She would worry about Ginny's relationships when she was done worrying about her own.

After bathing she dried herself quickly with a spell and ignored her hair all-together, stepping into the fireplace without even being acknowledged by her talking friends, they were so enraptured with one another.

It was interesting, considering how much the little redhead had once hated Draco.

ღ

Granger was having a hard time breathing when she stepped into Severus' room and he could tell. He'd all but memorized her subtle little noises, the meaning of her touches.

He was nearly fluent in all of her moods. He was also relieved, as he always was, when she arrived.

She sucked in a deep breath and he 'inside furrowed' his brow as he wondered what it was that had her so hesitant. Normally she was in the chair beside him already, hands on his and scent enveloping him.

He urged her on mentally but she didn't move.

"Potion's done." Was all she said, he would've sucked in a breath had he the control.

 _Well, get on with it then!_ He demanded.

"You're not going to like how it works..." _It's a potion, they are always foul. Just get it over with woman!_ "...I'm really sorry about this."

He heard the clear sound of a stopper popping from a vial and braced himself, if he'd expected a foul tasting potion to be poured down his gullet he'd been sorely mistaken.

Instead all he felt were soft lips over his, the delicate probe of a tongue as his lips were parted. Finally, the bitter taste of potion met his tongue as hers massaged it in, almost as if she were forcing it to be one with his mouth.

 _What are you doing Granger!?_ He was shocked, startled, not quite offended- though he wondered at how offensive it must be to kiss something that couldn't move.

Hermione immediately gasped and wrenched herself backward, eyes wide as she stared at the unmoving figure of Severus Snape.

"Say that again!" She sounded excited, he could almost feel her humming magic as she came closer to him. She leaned on the bed, he could feel her body heat, a hand just inches from his.

_I didn't say anything Granger! What in Merlin's name do you think you are doing!?_

She gasped again, she hadn't really expected it to work, but it had!

Oh it had!

And he was okay in there! Snarky as ever, and his voice, it was so sweet to her!

She took a few deep breaths as she stared at his unmoving lips. She'd done it!

She did a ridiculous little dance, unable to stop herself and glad there was no one to see her.

"I can hear you!" She nearly shouted, Severus 'inside winced' at her volume, it was like she could see the action in her head.  
"You winced! Oh, and you're okay." Her hands fell over his and he tried not to think how comforting the contact was. This couldn't be good, the girl being in his head after all his time of being able to act as he pleased, think as he pleased.

 _Of course I am Granger, now if you would kindly stop yelling we can figure out how to reanimate the wretched body I'm stuck to._ He growled.

Hermione could only grin, she wrapped her arms around his unmoving body with glee in crushing hug.

He wanted to sink into the ground.

"Yes, yes, we'll get to that later! I have to tell Draco it works!"

 _My Godson will not be kissing me, Miss Granger._ He sneered, she giggled.

"Of course not, I'll just relay the messages! I wonder how far it works? Oh, so much to explore!"

 _Ah, there is the know-it-all, of course you would be excited about this new little discovery while I lay in this bed and rot._ He was back to sneering and she rolled her eyes.

It was odd, like he could feel the action even though he was not the one to commit it.

_I would remind you, Granger, that it is impolite to roll one's eyes at one's superior._

Her face flushed as she blinked at him, curious as to how he knew, her mind was going too quickly to keep up.

Finally, as if she ran out of steam, she fell back into her usual chair. Her fingers wrapped around each other as she tried not to grasp his hand in hers. She didn't know if he would appreciate the contact and she was worried now that he could scold her.

_And, as for your dragging Draco into this mess, it displeases me greatly._

"I had to." She cast her eyes downwards, she'd been aware he would be upset about Draco's involvement. She was almost certain he would be displeased that Draco was living in her flat and flirting with Ginny Weasley as well.

 _What?!_ He nearly spluttered and her eyes widened. He could hear her thoughts as well.

"That's not good." She squeaked and promptly cleared her throat. "Well, any ideas on how to get you up and about?"

 _Do you have parchment?_ He could hear her rustling about. _Of course you do._ He nearly laughed to himself when he heard her pull a scroll of parchment from her bag felt the brush of her quill as she sat both on his bed.

 _I'm going to dictate a list of books that you will read and hopefully we will come up with the solution._ He sounded every bit her grumpy Professor and she frowned but followed his instructions.

When visiting hours ended and she left he sank back into himself, he mourned the loss of contact- he was certain she would not give it now- as much as he couldn't accept it.

It darkened his mood considerably to know the witch would no longer wrap her hands around his, no longer lay her cheek against the back of his hand.

He should have been happy she could hear him, but how could he be when it stole so much from him?

 


	8. Days 41 & 42

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 41_

_I can hear you, Granger, you realize._ Snape drawled, Hermione winced- shocked he'd been able to hear her enter the room despite her attempts to be completely silent.

 _Have you gone through the texts as instructed?_ It was interesting to her, the way his voice sounded exactly as it did aloud, inside her head. She played with the sound of it for a moment before she approached gingerly.

He hadn't been vicious- yet- and she didn't particularly have any desire to provoke him. He was not her Professor anymore and she knew herself to be quite the mouthy witch when she was in a mood.

And she certainly was in a mood today- having walked in on Draco and Ginny snogging on her couch. It flipped her stomach and she'd immediately been forced to tackle that situation, instead of basking in the glory of her achievement.

And such a glorious achievement it was.

 _Granger, are you in there at all? Have you gone completely empty-headed or will you be answering my question sometime today?_ She grimaced as she slid her chair up to his bedside. He took in the scent of citrus and vanilla almost greedily, though if she noticed she didn't let on.

"Sorry, uh, I did- didn't find anything of real interest." She cleared her throat a few times, he could feel the warmth of her hand as it hovered over his, she wasn't quite sure how to act now that she could hear him.

He took this discomfort as an opportunity- ever the opportunist- and 'inside sneered'. He knew full well she could see it, feel it, sense it- however it worked.

 _Afraid I'm going to jump up and bite you Granger, I never took you for the cowardly type._ He sensed her eyes narrowing as her hand clasped around his, he tried not to let his satisfaction seep through their connection.

Again, if she noticed she said nothing and that was fine by him.

"I'm not afraid of you." Her voice was low, but firm, he could feel her eyes as they burned into his unmoving face.

He barked an internal laugh, _Then, you are even more foolish than I would have thought!_

She grimaced- she wasn't going to let him bully her, however, her fingers tightened around his hand, her clasp tighter than he'd felt before.

It seemed almost as though she thought he would get up and run away from her at any moment.

Her throat cleared and her hand left his, he heard the familiar rumpling of her bag before a heavy tome was- rather roughly- dropped onto the bed beside his arm.

"I thought I could read through anything of interest in this one first and work our way through my own list." The know-it-all was back, her voice stern and even. He thought for a moment how well she would do as a Professor if she kept that up.  
"I'm glad you think so, I am training to do just that." He could envision her sitting up straighter, her voice was matter-of-fact, though it seemed to soften a bit.

Severus discreetly reminded himself he would need to be careful how he organized his thoughts. An accomplished Occlumens should be able to keep a girl like Hermione Granger out of certain parts of his head.

 _Well, as I cannot move I suppose we will be doing it your way, Miss Granger._ He sneered directly into her head, she sighed a bit and massaged the bridge of her nose.

Hadn't this been what she wanted? She'd wanted to remember what he was like so she could move on with Ronald.

He scoffed- she chose to ignore it.

"There's no need to be snappy, Sir. Would you rather I started with something that has no relevance?" She snipped back, annoyed that he'd heard the thought at all.

A throat cleared behind them and she turned to see a medi-witch eyeing her curiously. Severus found if he concentrated hard enough he could sort-of see what she was seeing, as if he were staring through her eyes- but underwater.

"Are you feeling okay dear? You realize of course he isn't speaking." The medi-witch looked concerned, Granger immediately locked up in her seat, unsure how to respond. It wasn't often she was caught out and it was often Potter who sweet talked her out of those situations.

 _Tell her you've done some foolish reading or another saying if you speak as if I'm awake I will eventually respond._ Severus instructed as he stared at the medi-witch through the gawping Granger's eyes.

"I read something, rather nonsensical actually that said if I speak as if he's awake, he will eventually respond." She finally made herself speak, he clapped sarcastically inside his head and rolled his eyes a bit.

_You are much slower than I recall, Granger._

_Perhaps it is because I have been completely absorbed in helping you!_ She thought back at him- whilst attempting to keep her face blank. The medi-witch stared at her closely for a moment before she nodded and moved back and away.

Hermione sensed the older witch thought she may need some help.

Her shoulders slumped and her forehead fell onto his arm when the witch was clearly gone. She took deep breaths in and out, ignoring his smirk in her head.

 _Am I really so distracting that you've gone daft?_ He smirked, it was cocky, she wondered if you could punch someone in their mind.

"I am not your biggest fan right now." She sighed and lifted her head, he would've drug it back down if he'd been able to move, her warmth a comfort- though he'd keep that catalogued away in the 'private section' of his mind- at least for the moment.

 _I assure you the feeling is mutual, continue._ He instructed, he couldn't help but notice she rolled her eyes at him before beginning to pick through the tome, mentioning anything that may be of interest.

ღ

 

_Day 42_

_Kindly tell Minerva to stop wasting your precious time to help find a cure for my condition._ Hermione rolled her eyes and massaged the bridge of her nose, trying to focus on McGonagall as Snape- for lack of a better word- nagged, her inside her head.

 _I'll do no such thing! I need this position._ Came her internal reply. The evening before, after she'd left him to his hospital room and gone home he'd been playing with their connection.

Of course he'd discovered that he could communicate with her mentally despite long distances. In fact she was currently at Hogwarts and he was talking to her inside her head.

She'd never been forced to share her head before, she was almost certain she didn't quite like the presence. She just wasn't quite sure exactly how to block him from speaking to her whenever he pleased.

Perhaps she should have just ignored him.

"Hermione? Hermione Granger, do you hear me?" McGonagall's lips were pursed, Hermione squinted at the elder witch's disappointment and licked her lips.

_You do that when you're nervous._

_Shut it._ She sighed out inside her head. She knew he had to be incredibly bored but that did that mean he had to make her day even more difficult than it already was?

No, no she didn't think it did.

"What has been going on with you lately, Miss Granger? I know you have been stressed, you know you can speak with me about anything." Minerva sat beside her former student turned apprentice. Hermione heaved a sigh but didn't speak.

 _I can't possibly tell her I made a potion from banned ingredients._ She thought to herself, no intention of Snape hearing her. Of course he did and she could see his smirk in her mind's eye.

 _Wouldn't she be dissapointed to know one of her precious Gryffindors broke the law to help a slimy Slytherin?_ He sneered, she chose once again to ignore him.

"It's nothing really, Pro- Minerva. I'm just trying to figure out the puzzle that is Professor Snape." Hermione assured the elder witch, a soft- surprisingly convincing smile on her face.

Minerva chuckled and shook her head a bit, "I imagine that is one puzzle that no one will solve."

Hermione looked determined, Snape locked the feeling it stirred in him away in the 'private section' of his mind. "I will."  
"Speaking of Professor Snape, I need to get to St. Mungo's, I've found a few spells that sound promising I'd like to try on him, see if I can wake him up at all."

"Don't exhaust yourself trying to save him, I'm sure he will wake up in time, the medi-witches seem rather confident." Minerva put a hand to Hermione's knee in an attempt to comfort.

"I just don't think they are quite right about what is going on with him." Hermione nodded politely and stood as soon as Minerva removed her hand.

"Your dedication is commendable, just please do not forget that you are still a young lady and that you deserve a life." Minerva stood as well, Hermione gave her a short hug despite Snape sneering inside her head.

"He deserves one as well." She said as she left, barely audible but enough to cause a spark of surprise in McGonagall and Snape.

 


	9. Days 43 & 44

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 43_

_This is absolute torture, Granger. How could you possibly be so cruel as to force me to sit through this?_ Snape sneered in Hermione's head, her eyes narrowed but she didn't bother to respond. If he didn't want to have to listen to her private affairs, he should learn to block it out.

Much as she wanted to stop the foolish bickering between her three friends she didn't, it was far too amusing to make Snape squirm.

She felt a wicked little smirk try to worm its way onto her face and she immediately forced it away, an attempt to remain impassive as Ginny argued with the two men adamantly.

Ron had recently discovered Ginny and Harry's break up of several weeks prior and was raising a big stink about it.

Not that he hadn't been relieved to see his best friend and little sister split- no, it had more to do with the choices she made after they split.

"With Draco? Bloody 'ell Ginevra! You've gone bonkers!" His blue eyes were huge as he stared down his sister, mind blown.

They'd all expected Harry and Ginny to be a sort of forever thing.

 _Please tell me he isn't going to disintegrate into babbling._ Snape grouched, Hermione smirked.

"And 'Mione!" He rounded on her now, she raised an eyebrow. "You knew about this- this- this madness!?" His mouth was open wide, eyes nearly bugging out of his skull. The brunette shook her head with a little smile and patted Draco's knee, Draco who sat quietly beside her, fists clenched.

He seemed to be grasping to his temper with everything he had in him.

"Who do you think has been there since the beginning, Ronald!" Ginny threw her hands in the air, Harry put a hand on Ron's shoulder as Draco stood to go to her, his arm going around her waist.

"Honestly Ron, it isn't a big deal. Malfoy has changed, he lives with Hermione, he can't be all bad." Harry's eyes were kind as he stared over at the new couple. It interested Hermione that Harry was not the one up in arms about the change.

He didn't seem to mind one way or the other- she grew suspicious. Snape was grumbling in the background of her thoughts but it was hardly enough to distract her.

"And just who exactly are _you seeing_." Harry was fixed in Hermione's gaze, Draco and Ginny looked relieved when Ron's attention left them and jumped to Harry, eyebrows in his hairline.

"I have no clue what gave you that impression." Harry fidgeted a bit and Hermione smirked.

"Do we know her?" Ron's focus was completely shifted now, his curious gaze on Harry. Ginny and Draco took the opportunity to flee with a grateful look in Hermione's direction, she only smirked and turned back to her two best friends.  
"You didn't cheat on my sister did you Harry Potter!?" Ron was growing a mottled red color that Hermione had seen many times.

_Perhaps he will simply explode and save the rest of us a life of misery._

_Are you ever going to stop your running commentary?_ Hermione sniped, she could see his malicious smirk in her mind's eye.

_Are you disturbed by my presence, Granger?_

_Are you disturbed by mine?_ She shot back quickly, it caught him off guard but only for a second and he managed to avoid recoil.

Harry and Ron argued in the background, her own conversation was much more engaging than theirs however.

_I have shared my head with a monster, I hardly think a little girl could have much impact._

She scoffed, _I'm hardly a little girl, sir._

 _You're hardly conducting yourself as an adult, Granger. There, bickering with your friends when you have responsibilities._ He sneered, she took it like a punch to the gut but steadied herself and took a deep breath. Ron and Harry were staring at her, having just said something she'd not bothered to listen to.

"I have to go." She grumbled and snatched her cloak up from her lap as she stood in a fluid motion. In an instant she was gone, leaving her two very confused best friends alone in her flat.

ღ

"My life doesn't revolve around you, y'know." Granger was pacing in his room, the light tap of her feet on the marble drumming on his last nerve.

 _Oh, and I just thought it was because you were incompetent that I was still trapped in here, good to know it is only because you are selfish._ He sneered, she gawked at his unmoving figure for a moment before her eyes narrowed.

"You're lucky you can't move, I would have slapped you by now. As it is it would look as if I were abusing a _corpse_." She hissed, his nose wrinkled in irritation.

Did he really look like a corpse now?

The tension in the silence was palpable, heavy as she stood staring at the unmoving figure of Severus Snape. Infuriating even in his indefinite sleep.

"This is getting out of hand." She slumped into her usual chair, fingers came up to massage her temples as she took a moment to pace her breathing. She needed to stop before she said something she would regret- before _he_ said something she would regret.

She wasn't sure how he'd managed to get under her skin so quickly but he did. She'd only been in his room for half an hour and she was already ready to go home and take a hot bath.

 _You're right,_ she'd been moving to stand and this stunned her right back into her seat, Severus Snape telling someone they were right. _We need to work together if we're going to make sense of this. Eventually you will have me out of your hair, we only need to figure out what is going on._

He made it sound as though she thought he was a burden, and perhaps she'd given him that impression but it was hardly the case. In fact, this was the most interesting thing she'd done since the end of the war.

She wasn't sure what she would do without a life of excitement.

Her chair scooting made his skin crawl and he was suddenly enveloped in her sweet scent, more vanilla than citrus today. This time instead of just holding his hand she picked it up and laced her fingers through his.

It was a new sensation, he wasn't entirely sure how he felt about it.

"I'm sorry, I don't want you to think you're a burden to me. I _want_ to help you." She whispered, her mouth dangerously close to his hand, her words wisped as a breath over his knuckles and his insides shuddered.

For once he didn't know what to say in response.

Should he demand she release him, make her back away? Did he want the wild thrumming in his chest and the tingling pulse across his skin?

As he pondered she pulled away and stood.

He wanted to groan in complaint at the loss. He remained silent.

"I'll be back tomorrow." She'd clearly taken his silence as displeasure, he could sense the slight slump inside her, he was certain however she carried herself as if nothing had happened.

Still he said nothing, only lay there like the coward he was beginning to believe he may be.

ღ

_Day 44_

Hermione stared at herself in the mirror and poked at one of the dark bags beneath her eyes delicately.

A wince as she stared at the clear reflection of her lack of sleep. Snape had been particularly quiet all night and into the following morning, not that it had made much difference, she still spent hours into the evening looking for a way to help him.

She poked at the bag again and turned back to the bath with a sigh, eyes bleary as she turned off the water and slipped in up to her chin.

Her muscles immediately relaxed, the sweet smell of her favorite bath scents wrapped around her.

Hair tied at the nape of her neck grew heavy with water and she sighed as she slipped further down.

She didn't realize her eyes were closing, so exhausted was she that it didn't even occur to her that she may fall asleep in the bath.

Her face slipped beneath the milky water, it was with worry Severus realized she wasn't coming back up.

He'd been trying to give the witch a bit of peace and now she was going off to nearly kill herself! He waited a moment, unsure if she would realize and surface- perhaps it was on purpose.

He realized it wasn't and panic seized him tight in its grasp.

 _Hermione! Wake up!_ Severus roared in her head, as loud as he possibly could, immediately she sat up in the bath, gasping for air as water sloshed into the floor, bubbles popping against the tiny black and gray tiles.

She hooked her arms over the side of the tub and hung over the edge as she gasped for breath, eyes closed.

Her hair clung to her neck like tiny tendrils, pulling her back toward the water. It discomforted her and she used her hands to violently pull the clinging strands off of her. She'd have sliced it off in her anxiety if she'd had a pair of scissors.

 _You are okay now, you are fine._ He took a tone with her so much softer than any she'd heard from him as she gasped and sucked for breath. It wasn't because she hadn't managed to catch her breath from almost drowning. It was something akin to a panic attack, her heart thrummed hard in her chest as she tried to come down- her skin prickled.

"What happened?" She finally managed to gasp aloud, something about his presence in her mind soothing her- despite his usually snide demeanor. "How did you know?"

 _Of course you almost drown and immediately you are asking questions._ He sneered irritably, his pulse settling to a normal tone. He'd have to keep an eye on this witch if she wasn't going to take care of herself.

He told himself it was for purely selfish reasons, she was the only one he could communicate with. He'd hate to be in a permanent sleep because she went off and neglected to take care of herself.

Yes, that was definitely the reason.

 _I assume you will be joining me in my room today, perhaps you should leave the books behind today._ He offered, unsure where the compassion was coming from but certain he needed to extend the proverbial olive branch.

"I'll be there soon, yes." She sighed, her body had nearly stopped shaking and she stood, wrapped herself in a towel, and slipped from the bathroom.

She doubted she'd ever take so much comfort in a bath as she had before, maybe never again.

"Thank you." He didn't deign to answer and instead shut her out again, certain there was no need to keep an eye on her while she dressed and took the floo network to his room.

She ran a hand down a bored Crookshanks' back as she passed him on the settee and, with a handful of powder, stepped into her fireplace.

ღ

 _We need to talk about why you haven't been sleeping._ Severus finally decided to broach the topic, he hadn't wanted to but the state of Hermione Granger was a bit worrisome. He knew it couldn't be only because she was staying up trying to help him.

Even someone with her will would eventually pass out if that were all.

"I don't know _what_ you are talking about." Her voice was muffled, her face buried in the sheets of his bed. She grimaced at how scratchy they were and wondered if maybe she should ask someone to change them, he couldn't be comfortable on them.  
"Oh screw it." She told herself and pulled out her wand, with a flick of her wrist the sheets were transfigured into a smooth, dark silk.

Severus nearly hummed in satisfaction at the cool fabric against him. He'd grown so frustrated with the scratchy sheets.

_I appreciate that but you are avoiding the topic, you will not distract me, Granger._

"Hermione."

_What?_

"Call me Hermione, I've saved your life, you've saved mine, just call me Hermione." She sounded exhausted, he didn't offer up his own name but gave an 'inside nod'.

_You are trying to distract me again, Hermione._

A chill raced up her spine, shocking her. She hadn't expected her name from him would cause such a sensation. She stuffed the feeling down and clenched her eyes tightly closed. She lay her face back down against the cool sheets and sighed.

"Observant, aren't you." She huffed into the sheets, he forced down a chuckle. So much like a petulant child when she was tired, apparently.

 _Hermione, get in my bed._ He instructed, he could feel her shock through their link, her wide eyes as she stared at him.

 _Not like that, Merlin._ He huffed, she laughed nervously. _Come on then, I'm obviously not going to get handsy._ The word sounded odd coming from him, the emphasis odd, she'd never imagined him being someone who was handsy, or in any kind of physical relationship at all- at least, not until recently.

"I'm not sure that's..." _Just do as I say and lay down, I know you sleep well here and leaned down in the chair will only cause injury to your back._ "...Oh fine." She groaned, unhappy with his interruption.

Still she pulled herself up into his bed and lay on her side beside him, one of her hands on his and her chin just above his shoulder. Her wild curls tickled his cheek and neck, he suddenly missed his high cravat- in fact he was unsure why he wasn't wearing it.

He had bigger things to worry about however.

It was the first time in so long someone had been so close to him without flinching away and he enjoyed it for a few moments, the sweet vanilla of her hair, the sharp citrus that clung to her skin. The faint smell of books older than he.

It took no time at all before her breathing evened out and her breath fanned against his hair, he wanted to wrap her in his arm and was incredibly frustrated- yet somehow relieved- that he couldn't move.

He only allowed himself to explore the feelings he'd been keeping locked away when he was sure she was entirely asleep. It concerned him that he may be developing feelings for the witch.

More so because she was something he could never have. She would attempt to fix him and move on to her next lost cause.

 


	10. Days 46 & 47

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 46_

Hermione chewed her lip as her eyes traced over the words of the rather thick, leather bound book rested in her lap. A finger flicked to the next page and she continued, eyes skimming for key words and phrases.

She sat curled beside Snape, legs crossed beneath her and her lower back pressed into his hip. She found the position much more comfortable for reading and he hadn't complained so she'd not bothered to move. She felt almost comfortable there, as if a day spent sleeping beside him just the day before had changed something.

 _Are you actually reading or are you simply staring at the pages in an attempt to appease me?_ He drawled, she could almost imagine his voice coming from behind her, the twitch of his arm as it settled on her lap.

With a bright blush she shook the thoughts away and looked back over her shoulder at him for a moment. Eyes narrowed on his unmoving face as she took in the dark lashes across pale cheeks.

"I am skimming, I assumed you didn't want me to take the time to read things that have absolutely nothing to do with your present situation." She could see him smirk in her mind's eye and pushed a wild curl behind her ear.

 _By all means, carry on then, Hermione._ His voice caressed her name and a shot of electricity raced up her spine. She'd been particularly focused on his mouth and decided it was best not to take that 'carry on' the way she wanted. Her eyes flicked back to the book in her hands and her tongue flicked out to lick her lips.

Finally, she decided she could no longer concentrate on the book and flipped it closed with a heavy 'thud' before she lay it in her usual chair.

She twisted in her position on the bed to face his prone body and her hands fidgeted in her lap as she stared down at him. His chest rose and fell evenly, sheets pulled up just below his chest. He wore a plain black shirt that made him seem more human and less ethereal to her than the frock coat and cravat he usually sported. His usually sallow skin was simply pale and his face had filled out considerably- presumably from the nutrients in the life extending potions the nurses fed him every night.

His deep black hair was loose around his head on his pillow, silken smooth and not weighed down by the heavy, slick mist from standing over cauldrons all day.

Her fingertips twitched up toward his chin and settled just below, the scar from the attack, the shrieking shack, it all flooded back to her, eyes pinched shut as she remembered the horrible day.

All intelligent thought stilled inside him when her fingers brushed across the blasted scar, he could feel her suffering at the memory and wanted to snap her out of it. He could barely form a coherent thought however and simply allowed her to carry on.

Her gentle fingertips skimmed from the scar up to his jaw line, falling over the sharp lines of his face. She realized, that to her surprise his lips were not as incredibly thin as she'd thought, when his mouth was not pursed in tension his lips were actually quite full.

She remembered the feeling of them against hers when she'd had to kiss him for the potion. It seemed like a lifetime even though it had been less than a week prior.

She wondered what it would have been like if his lips had been able to respond in kind.

Fingertips trailed across his lips, to the side of his face, up his jawline, his temple, through smooth hair before she pulled back as though she'd been bitten.

 _Whatever you're thinking Granger, stop._ His voice was quiet, husky as it drifted through her mind. She imagined deep black eyes opening and staring up at her, she wanted it so badly her body ached.

Even though she knew he would probably push her away if he could.

"I'm not thinking anything, sir."

_I don't believe you._

"I don't either." She admitted as a throat cleared in the doorway, her head shot back to face the medi-witch at the doorway. The witch watched her with eyes filled with pity, almost as if she knew Hermione's attachment to the man on the bed.

"Visiting hours are over dear." She spoke softly as Hermione slipped from the bed and pulled her shoes back on.

"Yes ma'am." She nodded as she gathered up her things and turned back to the prone man on the bed behind her. Her eyes drifted across him for a minute before she stuck a hand out to touch his.  
"Be back tomorrow."

And she was gone.

"That girl, falling in love with a man like you, who'd even think it?" The medi-witch tutted, he 'inside grimaced', highly improbable. She only felt pity for him, he was sure of it.

 _Not likely._ He scoffed, the witch performed a scourgify to clean him and tipped the foul potion he was subjected to nightly, into his mouth.

It slithered down his throat and again he wanted to choke and gag.

"I'm sure a man like you wouldn't believe it." She carried on tutting and straightening his room, "A shame, that redheaded boy seemed completely enraptured by her too." And the medi-witch was gone, leaving Severus annoyed in her wake.

_That redheaded boy doesn't deserve a woman like her, and neither do I._

ღ

_Day 47_

Hermione sat, curled in her chair, the fireplace warming the little room in her flat as she poured over a book. She was taking a break from the heavier reading of medical texts to pour over a book on Wizard History. She hadn't bothered to read the title and could barely focus on the pages.

Draco had gone to sit with Snape, on Hermione's request, she'd needed a break, a chance to get her thoughts in order away from him.

She licked her lips and subconsciously stroked Crookshanks beside her. Smart cat he was didn't move away and allowed her the comfort of his presence.

Ginny was home with her family, visiting, she and Draco were up to something but Hermione just couldn't quite put her finger on it.

She'd had her training session with Minerva earlier in the day and was looking forward to the start of school, little more than a month away. There were still positions that needed filling of course but everyone seemed confident everything would be in order by the time the year began.

They were hoping Snape would be awake by then so they wouldn't have to replace him as Potions Master.

Hermione blinked as she stared into the fire, there she went again, thinking about the brooding Potions Master when she'd resolved herself to take a step back from him.

It was like he haunted her thoughts even when he wasn't focused in her mind, even when she blocked him out behind thick walls she'd been practicing putting up.

He was a phantom, black eyes a constant presence in her mind. Long fingers on her skin in her fantasies.

She shook herself again, this time Crookshanks started and jumped into the floor, an offended mewl escaped him as he trotted away.

She slammed the book in her hands closed rather roughly and sank back into the soft fabric of her chair, legs pulled to her chest. She needed a distraction, something to relax her- she wouldn't be taking a bath again anytime soon and so with a huff she closed her eyes and tried to think.

Black eyes.

She growled at her own stupidity and hugged her knees.

What could she do to distract her mind from him?

ღ

 

Draco was relieved when he arrived back in the flat he shared with Hermione after a very awkward, quiet sitting with Severus. It was odd talking to someone who couldn't respond, despite the fact Hermione had assured him his Godfather could in fact hear him.

It was a relief to know the man was alive inside himself. Draco had even taken to doing some of his own research when he wasn't preoccupied with Ginny.

He smirked, who'd have thought he would end up with Saint Potter's ex-girlfriend.

Even more surprising was the fact he didn't care at all she was Potter's ex, in fact he couldn't have cared less. It was interesting but the strong, determined little redhead had always been captivating, he enjoyed the way she spoke her mind and stood up for herself.

It was a joy to watch her play quidditch and he had a suspicion he would be watching her play professionally before too long.

Yes, it was safe to say his powerful little girlfriend was a wonder to behold, and she was all his, Potter didn't even care.

"'Mione, where are you?" Draco grew worried when she wasn't where he'd left her, in her chair in front of the fireplace with a book.

Her book was discarded in the floor, open, face down and when he picked it up the pages were rumpled and folded. His eyes narrowed and he pulled his wand from a pocket inside his robes.

It was unlike Hermione to abuse a book, even more unlike her to leave the flat.

When he'd thoroughly inspected every room of the flat and come up empty handed his stomach flipped inside him. Where had she gone? Surely she was okay, he had to be panicking for no reason.

The witch could take care of herself after all, she'd survived the war.

He winced at the thought of a rogue death eater getting her, knowing of her connection to Potter.

Potter! Yes, he needed to tell Potter, he would know what to do- and if Draco was lucky she was already with him and he was worrying over nothing.

 


	11. Days 48 & 49

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 48_

Hermione stumbled into her flat at three in the morning, thoroughly exhausted and ready to crawl into her bed.

All plans of falling into bed and sinking into a deep, deep sleep were thwarted when she was greeted with four very annoyed friends scattered through her home. She blinked wide eyes at them and stifled a yawn as all four glared at her.

"Um, what's wrong?" She flinched a bit at the way Ginny clenched her fists in response.

"Hermione Jean Granger! Where were you!? Do you have any idea how worried we were!?" Ginny was the first to lay into her, the brunette simply blinked and couldn't stop the yawn that came to her. She was used to the redheaded temper that seemed to permeate the entire Weasley family.

"I was out," Hermione crossed her arms; annoyed at the fact she'd had to walk into angry people in her own flat, did they not realize she was a grown woman?

"Well, you should have at least let someone know you were going out." Harry crossed his arms next, stern green eyes on her face. She realized how much taller than her he was, still she wasn't backing down.

"And suddenly you're my father?" She cocked an eyebrow, Snape chuckled in her head. Her barriers had started to slip with the combination of exhaustion and irritation at her friends.

"Obviously not 'Mione, we were just worried about you." Ron was apparently the calm one for once, standing off in the corner of the room. His gaze was fixed on a book instead of her and her shoulders slumped.

"Look, I appreciate your worry, really I do- but, guys, I'm under a lot of stress." She explained, her eyes downcast, Ginny softened, Draco smirked- he wasn't sure what she was playing at but he knew for a fact she was playing them- like a fiddle for that matter.

"Oh of course you are!" Ginny rushed forward and wrapped the brunette in a hug, eyes glossing over.

"I'm sorry 'Mione." Harry huffed, looking down. Draco just shook his head in irritation. He'd talk to her after everyone was gone, she didn't know how to play him like she did her friends.

"I just, sometimes I need my space, y'know? I don't want to worry you guys but I spend all of my time working on something and I just wanted to do something for me." She explained, Ginny released her and gave a nod.

"I'm just glad you're okay, if you need to talk to someone my door is open." She offered, leant down and gave Draco a chaste kiss before she hauled her brother out- he muttered a half-assed goodbye as they used the fireplace to go home.

Harry was next, he also muttered a downcast goodbye before he too fled and it was only Hermione and Draco in the room.

Draco smirked and stood from his seated position.

"Don't even start, you." She shook her head, a little smile danced its way onto her lips. Draco chuckled aloud.

"Are you kidding? Where were you anyway?" Hermione shivered, the chill from her night out finally registering in her bones. She didn't want to answer the question but as Draco examined her with intense grey eyes she knew he wasn't going to let it go.

"I was in a muggle library, looking for- alternatives- for Snape's condition." She stared at the ground. She, of course, hadn't managed to have time to herself, it had all been about _him_. She stuffed down a bitter laugh- she could never get him off her mind.

Draco just stared at her with knowing eyes.

"When did it happen?"

Hermione shrugged but didn't bother to answer.

"Really Hermione, when did it start?"

Another bitter laugh, a sob grabbed at her throat, she forced it down.  
 _I'm stronger than that._ She assured herself.

"I can't be sure," she finally muttered, her legs giving way to drop her into the chair she'd managed to back into. She wrung her fingers back and forth, glad she'd managed to force up her crumbling walls, she knew they would give for good if she didn't go to bed, soon.

"You know when." Draco played with an ornament on her fireplace with long, silvery fingers. They reminded her of _his_ and she hissed in irritation with herself. Her eyes sought purchase anywhere, the walls, the books, it didn't matter. So long as he couldn't see into her she didn't care where she looked.

"It's not what you think." She sank further into her chair, knees coming up to her chest as loose flats toppled to the floor. Her toes wiggled in the biting air.

She shivered.

She hated herself.

"It isn't so bad, why are you acting like it's the end of the world?" Draco was beside her on the settee now, his elbows on his thighs as he examined her.

She sighed to herself and loosed her grasp on her legs a bit.

"What do you think will happen when he's better? He'll hate me for saving him, he'll leave, move on!" She felt her well-constructed walls falling again.

He couldn't hear this conversation. It would be the end of her.

"Or maybe he'll be grateful, maybe he feels the same in there?"

This time the bitter laugh couldn't be quelled as it ripped from her chest and she stood from her chair rather forcefully. Draco watched her with a placid face, she almost laughed to herself.

He was like the calm in her storm, she'd grown so used to having him there- having him as her friend, she couldn't imagine a time that they hadn't gotten along.

She crossed her arms across her chest, it occurred to Draco in the dim light of the candles how thin she'd grown.

He would need to go back and have a talk with his Godfather. He knew the man could hear him and that he and Hermione communicated.

Maybe he could talk some sense into her.

"You Gryffindors, always wearing your hearts on your sleeve." He sighed and stood, he crossed the room slowly to wrap her in a hug from behind. The sister his parents had never provided him with. His chin rested atop her head as she fell back into him- desperate for warmth- for compassion from anyone.

"That isn't always a bad thing." Her voice cracked as she let out a gentle laugh.

Her mental walls fell and Severus was shocked with what he found there. Hermione wrapped in his Godson's arms, she could see his sneer in her mind's eye.

 _So this is what you two get up to?_ He sneered, she shivered at his voice and a frustrated laugh tore from her throat. She was so tired, so, so tired.

_Please, Draco is like my brother. Don't jump to conclusions._

_I hardly care._ It was nearly a growl, she knew he cared, it was written in the sneer she could still feel, see reflected back to her.

 _Then why did you bother commenting?_ She challenged, she followed blindly as Draco led her to her bed and tucked her in, he took his place in the floor with a muttered goodnight but she hardly heard him.

Always lost in her own head these days.

ღ

Hermione sat beside Snape, legs crossed beneath her as she perched on his bed.

 _Just leave me._ He grumbled, he was still upset with her for the night before, though he couldn't pinpoint exactly why.

"You know Draco is only my friend." She frowned, her fingers were entwined with his, his hand limp in hers. He wanted to push her away, pull her to him.

He contemplated saying something cruel, hurting her to get her to go away.

Something in him just wouldn't allow it however and so he simply told her, over and over to leave him.

She wouldn't.

She wouldn't remove her hand from his, wouldn't stop touching his face with her sweet little caresses.

It was maddening.

It was wonderful, it was perfect.

 _Why can't you take a hint, foolish girl!? Just go!_ He tried raising his voice, growing more violent.

"You're not going to hurt me and make me leave." The pad of her thumb began to trace circles on the back of his hand. His 'inside eyes' narrowed and he grimaced to himself. He didn't want it to feel good.

Gods but it did, didn't it?

_I am a cruel man, Hermione, it is not worth it to stay here, leave me. Be with Draco, Weasley, whoever, just leave me._

"There is no whoever, and I won't leave you alone until I figure out how to get you moving again. Then, and only then, if you ask me to leave I will." He could feel her sadness at the words but chose to ignore it.

 _Have you come up with anything?_ She hated how anxious he seemed to be rid of her, she flinched a bit at the thought but sighed and pulled away from him all the same.

"I have been practicing a spell. I can't cast it on you until I've perfected it though, a poor cast could cause any number of unfortunate happenings."

 _Death?_ He sounded too hopeful, she shook her head, wild curls bounced around her.

"More like a second head, singing warts, a long forked tail." She informed matter-of-factly, he winced.

_Singing warts?_

She snorted a laugh, "Yes, that one I want to mess up on purpose just to see it." She sniggered.

 _I'll not be your test subject for that particular malady._ He warned, she could see his raised eyebrow in her mind's eye.

"But you are the perfect subject!" She exclaimed, a wicked smile on her face, "You can't even fight back!" He sneered at her and she giggled before she pulled a book from her book and began to skim, conversation over after she had her bit of fun.

ღ

 

_Day 49_

Draco and Ginny were fighting when Hermione left her flat to go visit Snape. Her eyebrow furrowed as she passed the bickering couple and she hoped they'd be done and over it when she returned later that evening.

Sometimes she wished she could just stay the night in Snape's room. That would be utterly wrong however, not to mention the fact that she had to be family to do so.

Something the medi-witches were certain she wasn't.

She thought on this for a few minutes as she stepped into the man's room, eyes drifted over the dull white walls, white marble floors. Her chair was a deep blue hospital chair, nothing all that comfortable. There was a bench attached to the wall, wide enough to sleep on with thick beige cushions. In fact, the only thing with any real color to it were the sheets she consistently transfigured for him.

Shiny silk and whatever color she wanted them to be for the day. Today they were Slytherin green, an attempt to please him.

Her eyes narrowed on his still figure as she came to sit beside him on his bed.

He didn't acknowledge her presence and his ignoring her stung her a bit. She tried to ignore the sting however and smiled as she moved her fingers across his hand.

It was dangerously cold and she began to panic, his chest wasn't moving.

Her eyes went wide with a gasp as she stared down at him. His lips were still lightly pinked but she could tell they were quickly turning a shade of blue.

Her breath caught in her throat as she panicked, her eyes welled with tears as she tore from the room as quickly as possible. Her feet slipped on the slick marble in her panic.

"There's something wrong!" Her scream was nearly hysterical as she garnered the attention of several medi-witches.

"He's cold, he's not breathing!" She sobbed, out of breath, two witches and a wizard rushed past her into Snape's room. She stared after them helplessly and winced when the door slammed shut behind the wizard.

He wasn't dead, he couldn't be.

She wouldn't survive it.

Her back to the wall she slid down and pulled her knees to her chest. She couldn't breathe- the medi-witches around her were saying something but she couldn't hear them.

She couldn't see anything as she tried to find her connection with him in her mind.

A sob broke free when there was nothing there, large tears streamed violently down her face.

"Can we get someone for you dear?" A voice finally broke through her muted hearing, her vision saw only dull greys as she looked up at the medi-witch.

"Malfoy, Draco Malfoy." She requested, voice cracked as the witch stood and told another what she'd said. She felt dizzy, she couldn't focus and her head was pounding.

What was she going to do?

He was gone, the connection was gone.

She wanted him back.

Now.

 


	12. Days 49 & 50

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Day 49 – Evening_

Every beat of her heart was painful.

Every breath shattered her that little bit more as she sat in the hall.

Draco occupied the space in the floor to her left, Ginny on her right, each had an arm wrapped around her back. Harry was pacing, having given up on making her feel better with speeches.

Ron had gotten frustrated and left at least an hour prior. She could hardly care, she didn't care about much of anything as she sat in her ball, knees pulled up to her chest.

It was so odd, that she'd grown so attached to the man, so attached so quickly that she literally felt like her heart was being ripped from her chest just because he wasn't there.

They'd managed to revive him but he was touch and go, it was only a matter of waiting to see if he would survive.

She sniffed and lay her head on Ginny's shoulder.

The waiting was the hardest part.

A kind eyed witch stepped out of the room and glanced to Hermione huddled in the floor. It was the same who'd noticed her attachment to the man behind that closed door.

Hermione tried to focus on the kind blue eyes but nothing seemed to be working, her own eyes burned with tears that could no longer come.

"Would you like to come in and see him dear?" The elder witch leaned down a bit, a hand held out to the younger. Hermione nodded rapidly, her eyes on that hand before she took it, more than willing.  
"I can give you just a few minutes, okay?" The witch's voice was soft and airy, she winked as she led the young woman to the door.

"Thank you so much." Her voice cracked a bit but she didn't bother to try and cover it up, isn't that what Draco had teased her for? Wearing her heart on her sleeve? She hardly cared.

The room was dark when she stepped through, a few well-placed torches cast the only light. The door clicked shut beside her and a chill raced down her spine as she worked her way across the darkened room.

He was laying there, chest moving up and down, she wanted to sob at the sight. It was such a relief to know he was alive.

Before she had a chance to completely register what she was doing she had crawled up into the bed.

She swept her hair back in a low bun and lay her ear to his chest, the gentle thumping of his heart mending hers.

Finally, her breaths didn't hurt, she didn't feel as though she was shattering with every inhale. Her hand fell to his right side to grasp the hand there.

She could feel his shirt growing wet beneath her cheek, tears she hadn't realized she'd been crying soaked the material.

"Bastard, you can't do that to me." She whispered, sure he couldn't hear her.

Her face lifted and a hand ran through his hair, touched the side of his face.  
"You're only sleeping now though." She assured herself, unable to move away far enough that his heartbeat fell away.

"Only sleeping." She buried her face in his chest, so frustrated with her attachment to the dark wizard beneath her.

 _I need a vacation._ She released a mirthless laugh and slipped from his bed, her fingers hard pressed to pull away from his. She made her way to the door and slipped out, quiet as she could be.

"Are you okay?" Draco was leaned against the wall, Ginny wrapped around him, so much shorter than him. It was cute, the contrast.

"He's only sleeping." It was all she could force through her lips as she stared at the couple in front of her. She looked to Harry who was watching her with a guarded expression. His arms barely had time to open before she crashed into his chest and he wrapped her in a warm hug.

"It will all be okay now, Hermione." He assured, rubbing soothing circles on her back. "Let's take you to get some sleep." He waited for her nod to apparate them to her flat, Draco and Ginny followed close behind.

"Everyone can stay here tonight." Hermione broke away from Harry and quickly transfigured her settee into a bed. "Ginny can't sleep on the floor after all." She gave Draco a smile, he shook his head with a smirk.

"I can go home if you like Hermione, I don't have to stay." Harry assured, she shook her head and the bun at the nape of her neck broke loose, curls spilled over her shoulders.

"No, it's late and I don't want to be alone." She hugged herself, "Do you mind taking Draco's spot?"

He shook his head and followed her to her room. Soon everyone was settled in and sleeping peacefully.

Everyone but Hermione, who stared up at her ceiling with a heavy block of ice in her abdomen.

ღ  
  


_Day 50_

Morning came and Hermione slipped from her bed, hardly rested. Her skin prickled and crawled with her desire to get moving however and so soon she was bathed and in clean clothes.

She didn't bother with the mirror as she slipped past Draco and Ginny sleeping in her little library.

Before she could stop herself she was at St. Mungo's, the medi-witches watched her curiously as she found her place across from his door and settled into the floor.

"Excuse me, but are you by chance Hermione Granger?" One of the younger witches came up to ask, she looked a bit guarded, long blonde hair pulled up in a high ponytail. Hermione nodded as she stared up at the witch blankly.

She didn't have the energy for fake niceties.

"He's been asking for you."

Hermione's heart stopped beating in her chest, breathing stopped. She stared up at the witch with wide eyes.

"What?" Her voice was a dull rasp, barely audible though somehow the medi-witch heard her.

"He's been asking for you."

"More like demanding we bring you to him." An older witch joined them, gray hair in a stern bun and crow's feet at the corner of her deeply set green eyes.

"He's-," she brought her fingers to her mouth, "he's awake?"

"Woke up last night." Hermione shimmied up from her sitting position, a bit shocked that she still had to look up at the two medi-witches.

"And," she was still speaking through her knuckles, the elder witch looked annoyed, "he wants me?"

"Yep, woke up spittin' fire." Hermione recognized an American accent from the younger, blonde witch, everything around her seemed richer. The colors were brighter than they'd been in days, voices were coming to her more effortlessly.

Her eyes focused on the door for a minute, she bit her lip.

"Can I?" She paused, eyes focused on the door hard. "Or do I need to wait for visiting hours?"

"Well, normally we wouldn't let you but, Pamela, the night Madame, said to send you in as soon as you arrived. Said you're as close to family as the man has." The older witch crossed her arms, her accent was something deeper, she thought she could pick out some Germanic sounding syllables.

She shook her head at herself- she was thinking about accents when she should be going into that room.

"Word of caution though honey, he's crabby as can be this morning, spittin' fire." Hermione smirked and shook her head.

"He's always that way." She took a deep breath and walked across the hall to the door.

"If you cannot do as I ask you have no business entering my room." Severus growled when he heard the doorknob turn. He wanted Granger and until they could supply her he would not be cooperative.

"Well, if that is the way you feel about it." Her sassy voice drifted through the slight opening in the door, his breath caught in his chest. It hadn't been that long since he'd heard her but the anticipation of seeing her.

She moved to pull the door closed again and it jumpstarted his breathing again.

"What do you think you're doing Granger? Come in here this instant, and leave those blasted witches out there." He demanded, he certainly didn't sound like he'd been unconscious for more than a month. Of course, who was she to say how he should sound?

She slipped around the door and it clicked closed behind her with an odd sort of finality. She could feel her hair stand on end as she leaned against it- arms behind her back against the cool wood.

He took a minute to look her over, her figure was slight, possibly thinner than she'd been during the war and her eyes looked so tired. Dark circles marred her usually smooth skin, her hair was a bit bushy around her head, curls falling all around her face as she stared at the floor.

She forced back the moisture she could feel stinging at her eyes. He was sitting upright, staring at her. Looking in no way as if he'd been dead not even twenty-four hours before.

She blinked away the tears and looked back to the floor quickly. She wasn't sure what he was going to do, scold her and send her away?

That certainly wasn't what she wanted.


	13. New Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_New Day_

His hospital room in St. Mungo's was the same as it had been the day before, and all the days leading up to that- with one outstanding difference. Severus Snape was awake.

He was awake, he was sitting up, and he was staring at her.

She fidgeted against the heavy wooden door, trapped in his dark gaze. Not like the lioness- instead like a mouse- faced with a snake.

And she was still, was waiting for him to strike, ready for his vicious fangs to sink into her and rend her in half.

She'd anticipated it from the very start; for saving him, for touching him, for teasing him!   
Oh! There were so many reasons he must have had to inject his venom and then send her away to lick her wounds.

There was only one reason, however, that it would break her.  
She cared for him, far more than one should a former professor who could send someone to their grave with only his dark stare.

"Is this the greeting I deserve?" His voice was dark velvet, so much richer than the one in her head. It wrapped around her, sunk its heavenly claws in and drew her gaze to his lips, only a second and her eyes were back on his.

Deep onyx and light brown locked, Hermione was the first to blink and look away, drawing a smirk to his face.

"Well, Hermione?" She shivered as the realization came to her, this was what he wanted.

He was trying to intimidate her, force her into action.

"What can I say?" Her body drifted slowly away from the door, eyes locked on his upright form. She wondered for a moment when he'd slung his legs over the edge of the bed, she paused when she realized he was moving to stand.

He stopped, she moved forward gingerly.

He made to stand- she paused, watched him closely. He smirked as he stood to his feet and stilled.

She would still approach him, he knew, could see the determined look sparkle in her eyes as she began to move forward again. Baby steps- it didn't matter, they still brought her ever closer to his grasp.

His fingers tingled with the want to grab her, pull her to him and envelope himself in her scent.

That wasn't all however, he wanted nothing more than to scold her- her slight frame, dark circles.

She wasn't taking care of herself and he found it bothered him more than it ought.

Soon, their little dance brought them to stand toe to toe. He had to admit though, he quite enjoyed the dance itself.

It pleased something predatory in him to do the back and forth with the petite witch.

Her chin tipped to look up into his face, he was quite a bit taller than her, she realized.

The back of his hand ghosted across her cheek, down her neck to trace down her arm. The touch was so feather light she was unsure if it was real at all as she stared up at him.

"Foolish witch, you haven't been taking care of yourself." His breath fell across her face as he stared down at her, raven black hair fell, cast shadows across his angular features.

She winced, she hadn't been of course.

"How can you expect to save the world if you are too weak to move? Dead from exhaustion?" His voice wrapped her in its silk, caressed her skin at brought gooseflesh out on her arms.

She realized she'd only managed to speak two words since shutting the blasted door and opened her mouth to speak just as said blasted door burst open.

Hermione's mouth immediately snapped shut as it seemed everyone filed into the room. When had it come visiting hours? It must have just.

She heard a low growl in his chest- obviously not heard by anyone else as they didn't flee in pure terror.

Her hand came out to caress his gently, as if by instinct before it fell away and she turned to face her friends, and Minerva, with a bright smile.

"He's awake." Her voice sounded tired as she fell into her usual chair, he cast a worried glance at her before he focused on his guests, the sooner he appeased them and sent them away the sooner he'd have the little witch to himself.

There was so much they needed to _talk_ about, after all.

"It's good to see you awake, dear boy, but should you be up so soon?" Minerva was the first to cluck over him, ever the mother hen as she attempted to usher him toward his bed, he stood his ground.

"I believe I've had a lifetime's worth of lying about, Minerva." His voice came in its usual commanding tone and everyone looked shocked.

Had they expected him to be weak and frail upon awakening?  
They were in for a terrible surprise.

 _I should go._ Her voice reverberated in his head and he masked his shock quickly. The bond was still there then?

Interesting _._

 _You'll do no such thing._ He demanded back, he could feel her wide eyes on him and the smirk that pulled the corner of his lips up could not be stopped.

Her sharp little inhale told him she'd seen and knew it to be true, the bond still existed.

"It's good to see you awake, Godfather." Draco smirked, arm around the little redheaded Weasley girl. Snape raised an eyebrow as his Godson fell under his gaze.

"It is good to see you as well, Draco, you and I will need to have words as soon as I am released." He stared at the boy hard, Draco winced a bit and shuffled backwards with Ginny quickly. Her questions about his retreat unanswered until they were far enough out of the room that he felt safe to speak freely again.

"He's going to kill me." Hermione heard the gulp from just far enough away and shook her head with a little giggle.

"I just wanted to thank you proper, Professor." Harry stuck out his hand, Severus sneered between the face and hand.

They really had forgotten themselves then?

"Oh please, call me _Master Snape,_ I'm not your professor any longer." His words dripped sarcasm, Harry winced a bit when Severus' cold hand grasped his and then allowed it to fall away. He could vaguely hear Minerva clucking over Hermione, trying to usher the younger witch from the room.

The younger witch who refused to leave.

"Good to see you again, Master Snape." Harry sassed back, Severus sneered but said nothing else as Harry turned on his heel to leave, a short goodbye to Hermione over his shoulder.

A long term nap did not make one simply wake up a different person.

Ron trailed behind Harry, not bothering to give a goodbye to either, though his eyes lingered on Hermione a bit longer than Severus had liked.

That took care of the young ones, he only needed to be rid of Minerva and he would have his witch to himself.

He paused.

His witch? Where had that come from?

 _Hermione, I will have Hermione to myself._ He told himself as he rounded on Minerva, who was still trying to coax the younger witch from the room.

"I haven't been able to speak to Severus properly yet. I will rest tonight, I promise." Hermione hated the bitter taste of the lie on her tongue. She hadn't slept properly since the war, save the few times she'd fallen asleep in Snape's bed.

"Severus?" Minerva looked between the two with a raised eyebrow, her voice shrill as she stared between them.

 _Bloody hell._ Hermione sounded exhausted even in his head, he almost felt sorry for the witch. Almost.

"Indeed, she could only call me Professor for so long before it grew tedious I'm sure, having been here every day." Snape dismissed the woman's curiosity with the wave of his hand. Minerva gave a suspicious little nod but said no more on the matter as she settled onto the awkward little beige cushioned bench in the room.

Apparently if Severus thought she would be easy to get rid of he'd been mistaken.

It was Hermione's turn to smirk as the man cocked a dark eyebrow at her. Her stomach flipped, was it wrong to perceive such a little thing as an eyebrow as sexy?

She thought so, though it hardly made a difference in the sensations spiking through her.

She turned her chair to face Minerva and crossed her legs.

Severus wanted nothing more than to lift her from the chair and settle beneath her. The need for physical contact almost irritating as he thought of the different ways he could get closer to her.

None of which seemed appropriate.

He warred with himself on whether or not he even cared to be appropriate but eventually the proper man inside him won out.

He took a seat far enough from Minerva for comfort on the strange bench, made for sleeping- though he hardly saw how it could be comfortable.

Minerva engaged them in conversation for more than an hour before she finally gave in and left.

"Owl if you need anything." She wrapped Hermione in a tight hug before she left, Hermione only shook her head with a little smile playing on her lips.

"I'll be fine Minerva. I will see you tomorrow for lessons?" She pretended to ask, though it was more of a reminder, the hope that the elder witch would give in and leave when she realized that she would in fact see her protégé the next day.

She watched Minerva leave before she turned back to the wizard who'd all but screamed to make everyone leave. She let out a little squeak when she found he loomed over her, closer than he'd been before.

She didn't miss the little smirk that tilted his lips at her surprised noise. She wondered if he'd ever heard of personal space but then supposed she deserved it considering all of the invasion she'd done over the last fifty days.

Not that she was keeping count.

Of course she wasn't.

That would be silly.

"I don't recall giving you permission to call me Severus." He cocked an eyebrow, she licked her lips at the dark look in his eyes.

"I don't recall asking for permission." She held her ground, the unexpected guests had given her time to get herself in order. Much to Severus' chagrin, he'd enjoyed her out of sorts.

Though she was just as much fun when her wits were about her, he had to admit she was never dull.

"Taking liberties with someone's name is a grievous crime, Hermione." Her knees shook but she dared not retreat. She was his equal and she would make him see her as such.

"Your voice is the only crime in this room." She blushed bright red, appalled that _that_ had been her retort. A wicked little smirk tipped his lips, a new light in his eyes.

"Careful witch, you may be asking for more than you can handle." Gods, it was wrong that a man's voice could be so sensual, could ignite such a fire in her stomach. His words dark and inviting as he stared down at her.

"The same could be said for you." She raised her own eyebrow, shoulders squared. A small bark of laughter escaped him before he turned and swept toward her chair. She wondered how he could still be so commanding without being wrapped up in all of his dark clothing.

No cravat, nor frock coat, no heavy wool cloak. Still he seemed sheathed in darkness.

He sat, one long leg crossed over the other, his face serious and his fingers steepled. She took his cue and sat on the uncomfortable bench, she knew it was a disadvantage he'd given her on purpose but took care not to let her discomfort show.

"I believe, Hermione, that we are due a conversation." His mouth caressed the words and she had to force herself to attention. She brushed a stray curl behind her ear with a shaking hand but gave a little nod.

"It would seem so."

 


	14. New Day II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_New Day - pt. 2_

Hermione Granger and Severus Snape sat across from one another, locked in a battle of wills as neither wanted to be the first to break eye contact.

The former intent on showing the latter she was his equal, the latter intent on squashing that belief in the former.

"So, what is it you would like to talk about?" _Severus_ , she bit back that part and chose to leave names out of the equation entirely. He watched her with hard eyes over steepled fingers, she tried not to focus on those fingers, so long and slender.

The incredibly capable fingers of a Potions Master.

"First of all, I would like to inquire on the location of my wand." It wasn't a question, she gave him a timid smile and lay her hand delicately over said wand in her pocket.

"Are you going to hex me?" He blinked, examined her face, and nearly laughed when he found she was entirely serious.

"Of course not!" He scoffed, arm and hand outstretched, those long fingers there in front of her waiting patiently. She observed them for a moment but shook her head and produced the wand.

It had been nestled happily beside hers and she felt almost lost without it there as she slipped it into his waiting hand.

A relieved exhale came unbidden as he wrapped his fingers around it and it was put away on his person, no need to make her nervous- if she really thought he would hex her.

He uncrossed his legs, his elbows coming down to rest on his knees as he leaned in toward her. It was the most casual position she'd ever seen him take and it took her off-guard for a second. His black hair shifted silkily around his face and caught on a few growing whisker hairs.

She clasped her hands together to keep from brushing them back and shifted in her seat. His dark eyes assessed her, she felt laid bare there before him as he observed her.

He hooked his fingers together, every movement fluid as the day she'd last seen him moving about, without a gash in his throat.

"Why would I hex you, Hermione?" He finally spoke and she felt the tension rush from her shoulders, she hadn't realized she'd been holding them so taut waiting for him.

"I really," she brushed a heavy curl behind her ear, it immediately fell back rebelliously, "really pushed the boundaries didn't I?"

He took it upon himself to brush the wild curl back, his fingers tangled in her hair and he stared into her eyes.

She fidgeted, she hated feeling so unsure. She'd just been through so much lately. The war, the training, the restoration, her friend's relationships, Ron, trying to communicate with Snape, succeeding, her feelings, his _death-_ no matter how short, his awakening, it was so much non-stop.

Her eyes started to burn as she lingered on his death. That had been the one tragedy she'd been having a particularly hard time coping with, considering he was alive and in front of her. She couldn't shake the feeling that he might not have been. She saw his blueish lips and unmoving chest every time she closed her eyes.

She wasn't aware she'd been crying until the pad of a rough thumb wiped her cheek, his hand fell down to her wrist and he stood, pulled her up with him. She was pliable, unable to stop her body following his command.

Before she could understand, comprehend what was happening she was pressed into his chest, his chin atop her head and his arms wrapped around her. Hermione found herself wishing the smell of potions still clung to him but took him in regardless, warmth and masculinity created a bubble around her as she cried into him.

She was vaguely aware of a hand rubbing circles into her back, she fisted her hands in the front of his shirt and forced herself to pull back enough to look up into his face.

"Don't you hate me?" Her voice didn't quiver, though she was unsure how as she'd been a blubbering mess not a second before.

His eyes narrowed on her face, a chill raced down her spine and he could feel her shiver under his hands. He had no intention of letting her go- not now that he'd caught her.

"Pardon? I don't think I quite understand the question." An eyebrow cocked and she let her forehead fall onto his chest.

_Deep breaths Hermione, you can do this, deep breaths, you have to address what you've done._

He smirked at her inner monologue but said nothing, he'd have loved to tease her but would not have loved the added tedium of trying to draw an explanation from her afterward.

"I helped save you, for that alone you must hate me." His hands were on her shoulders, she wrapped her arms around herself. He felt like her eyes were burning into his face, looking for even one stitch of hate.

She wouldn't find it there.

Oh, she might've when she'd first helped to save him, perhaps even after two weeks, but that had been when his true feelings had begun to go to shite. He'd been forced to face that he didn't hate her, that her touch wasn't only wanted for the necessity of it.

And then he'd promptly gone into denial, though he'd never been more sure that he didn't hate someone in his life, even at that point.

"I don't, and that isn't why you're crying, tell me what is wrong with you?" His voice was low, a near whisper but it still managed to burn fire through her veins. His large hands on her shoulders pulled her forward a bit, though she didn't think she could get closer.

She lay her cheek against his firm chest. His heartbeat there, just under her ear, such a sweet drumming under her head.

"You died."

"Of course I did, you saved me."

She shook her head at this and pulled back again to look up at him from under reddened lids.

"No, you died here, again, just yesterday!" Her eyes looked haunted and he shook his head, hair clung to his unshaven face again and he fought back the urge to sneer.

He would be getting out of there, that day, and he would be getting back to himself if it was the last thing he did.

She turned her head downward, looked away from him.  
It annoyed him more than he'd have liked to admit and he caught her face in his hands, thumbs near her chin and finger tips tangled in her hair.

"I'm alive now, and surprisingly well, though I hardly see why my death was anything to cry over." He cocked an eyebrow, he wasn't fishing for compliments, he honestly didn't understand why she had grown so upset.

She'd said herself she'd have the nurses allow him death if he hadn't been in there.

"Idiot." Her voice was a whisper, breath drifted across his lips, warm and inviting.

"How so?" His voice was dangerous, it stoked the fire in her body.

_Dangerous Severus Snape should certainly not be so sexy._

He smirked, his nose brushed hers as he came closer, her eyes fluttered but did not close. Stubbornly she continued staring into his onyx eyes, he could feel his smirk grow with satisfaction.

_Brave, brave little Gryffindor._

She grasped that bravery, seized it and didn't let it go until her lips had met his. Quickly found she didn't need it when he immediately seized control, stole dominance of, and a gasp from her mouth.

Her eyes fluttered closed then against her will or not she didn't know, she was lost to the rush of sensation. It was different, so very different from the kiss to administer the potion, though she had to admit she'd felt something even then.

No, this was so much more intense, his lips moving hungrily with hers, his teeth nipped at the tender flesh of her lower lip. She gasped again and his tongue slipped its way inside, fought for dominance with hers, the taste, the pressure on her lips, the pressure building in her abdomen, it was so much.

He hadn't been surprised when she'd met his lips with hers, it had been his ultimate goal after all that if nothing else he pried a kiss from the witch. She'd burned hot and cold in her exhaustion and he'd had to be cautious but it had been worth it. He groaned into her mouth with her little gasp and took in her taste, sweet and subtle and oh so very precious.

His hands left her face and came down to grasp her hips, pulled her into him more tightly. She felt his arousal and flushed when he pulled away and lay his forehead to hers.

"Merlin witch, what are you doing to me?" His voice was coarse, more so than she'd ever heard it and it excited her, her hands in his hair- when had that happened?- fell to his shoulders and lower, traced down his chest.

A dark smirk took his healthily plumped lips as her cool little hands came down to rest on his abdomen, fingers pushed at the firm flesh there. His own fingers dug into her hips before he released her and stepped back.

He took in the rumpled, reddened witch and licked his lips in a way that she could only take as predatory before he spoke.

"You will wait here for me. Do. Not. Go. Anywhere." It wasn't optional and she immediately fell into her chair, eyes wide at his commanding tone. She shivered when a mask- his mask- fell over his face and he stepped with every bit of dark command out of the door to address the medi-witches.

It wasn't long before he was back, stood in front of her and staring down at her with sparkling black eyes.

She wondered for a moment what she'd gotten herself into but knew, knew there was no getting out of it now- even if she'd wanted to.

Which she was certain she didn't.

She gave him an innocent little smile as he held a long fingered hand out to her. She took it without hesitation, surprising him, though he didn't show it.

Severus led her to the fireplace with a little smirk playing at his lips and leaned into her ear. Hot breath cascaded across the delicate skin and she almost whimpered at the renewed surge of hot lust in her veins.

Perhaps she needed to stay at St. Mungo's after all?

She must be going out of her mind if breath on her ear had become a turn on.

She reminded herself it was _his breath_ , him and everything she'd longed for during her long nights awake as he lay in the bed unconscious.

"To Prince Manor." He whispered their destination, she shivered as he reached to grab a handful of green powder for each of them.

Before she knew it she was being tugged to an unknown destination with the most dangerously attractive dark wizard she'd ever met just behind her.

 


	15. Kiss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Kiss_

Hermione's head was still fuzzy when she stumbled from the hearth and onto a plush, grey rug. Severus stepped gracefully out behind her and observed the room briefly, his shoulder brushed against hers and she blinked up at him for a moment, looking away when his gaze settled on her.

A flick of his wand lit the fireplace and warmth created a comfortable bubble around Hermione. She smiled briefly, another flick and both were cleaned from head to toe of soot.

"Make yourself at home, Darbi should be about, somewhere, just call for her and she will bring you anything you should need. I have some," he paused, " _business_ , to attend to." And as if he still wore his sweeping black robes he was gone, all power and pride.

Hermione scoffed and kicked the shoes from her feet, leaving them near the elevated stone hearth. Her toes dug into the cool rug and she smiled to herself, the sensation made her feel oddly relaxed.

The room was decorated smartly in blacks and greys, a few torches burned, magically lit and floating where they would most likely be needed. Her eyes drifted across the numerous windows, heavy black curtains with pretty little grey sheers hanging over them.

She stepped lightly as she explored the room, ran her hand across the back of a black leather couch and reveled in the smooth coolness beneath her fingers.

A startled noise escaped her when a little house elf with large brown eyes appeared in front of her. "Master says Darbi needs to be helping Madam, can Darbi be getting madam a drink?" The elf tilted her oddly shaped head and smiled sweetly, she wore a black dress that had obviously been altered from a pillow case, though it suited her quite well.

Hermione smiled and held a hand to her chest for a moment, trying to get her rapidly beating heart back under control before she answered the elf. "No thank you Darbi, I'm fine."

The elf nodded and disappeared with a large 'crack'. Hermione wandered the room for a few more minutes before she settled onto one of the deep leather couches. Immediately she was swallowed into the smooth fabric and her eyes closed in satisfaction.

Hermione was startled awake by something touching her face and immediately looked up into the eyes of none other than Severus Snape. His eyes were focused intently on her face and his lips curled into a little smirk as he stared at her, his fingers caressed her cheek.

She shivered a bit under his black gaze and twitched an eyebrow upward in question.

"It is interesting to me that as soon as you are in my home you sleep, when you look as though you haven't slept properly in weeks." His words wrap around her and she could feel her flesh warming, her cheeks burned.

His fingers felt cool as they caressed her cheek.

"Do you make a habit of watching guests sleep, or am I special?" She challenged, an attempt to direct his attention elsewhere.

Instead of the snarl she'd been expecting she received a deep chuckle that sent prickles of gooseflesh across her arms and up her legs.

"You are undoubtedly special, considering no guests ever grace this Manor." He stood to his full height and held a hand to her. She slid hers into it without thought and the trust there astounded him for a moment before he allowed it to settle to the back of his mind.

As Snape pulled her to a stand Hermione observed him, he wore his usual waking attire. Fitted frock coat with oh-so-many buttons up its front, high cravat. He was shy the teaching robes and instead wore only his long sweeping black cloak, a silver snake clasp at its front caught her attention and she stared for a moment.

"Are you comfortable to leave in your attire, or do you require Darbi to retrieve something else?" It wasn't snide, in fact it sounded like he genuinely cared about her feelings as far as being seen in her current attire. She stared down at the blue jeans and jumper she wore and felt she paled in comparison to her companion.

"Are you comfortable to be seen with me in my attire?" She tilted her head, licked her lips, and stared up at him with the widest brown eyes. His heart stalled for a moment and he closed his eyes briefly to get his bearings.

"I would be proud to be seen with you in a potato sack, I have no doubt you would still be lovely." She blushed deep red at this and turned her head away, curly brown hair blocked her face from his view. He smirked and held his arm out to her.

When she took it they disapperated with a 'crack' that resounded through the empty manor.

After the familiar tug and pull of apparition she smiled when they landed in front of a little café, she wasn't sure where they were but she could see several witches and wizards in robes around them and knew they were in a wizarding town. He held the door for her and let her in with a coy smirk. She giggled to herself and shook her head as they found a table in the darkened back corner.

"Pardon my assumption but you look as though you haven't eaten in ages, I thought it best to feed you before you drift off for a week of catch up sleep." He stared at her from over his menu, black eyes the only thing visible. She glanced down at the table and sighed.

"I haven't been worried about things like eating and sleeping I'll admit." His hand was suddenly on top of hers, she gave him a shy smile and his heart filled when she didn't pull away.

He wasn't sure what had gotten into him but the witch seemed to like it and so it suited him just fine. He just hoped when he eventually turned back into the grouse he knew himself to be she wouldn't run away.

The rest of their meal passed amicably, he found he quite enjoyed talking to the little witch and it hadn't taken him much pushing at all to get her to eat most of the meal set before her. Her eyes were open and she laughed freely, so much so that he felt himself settle into comfort around her as they talked about the repercussions of an altered wolfsbane potion.

When the night began to close in on them and they'd worn out their welcome in the little café he held his arm out to her again.

Hermione considered him for a moment, she thought perhaps she should go home but something in his eyes told her she didn't want to miss accompanying him. She took his arm and they arrived back in what she assumed was Prince Manor, though this was hardly a sitting room.

Instead there was a large, four poster bed to her left, a thick black rug under her and heavy silk sheets spread across the bed.

When she released his arm Severus unclipped his cloak and draped it over the back of one of two chairs in the room. Soon he'd turned back and his eyes were on her, dark and deep, sparkling in the dim firelight from the fireplace, the only light in the room.

It played shadows across his face as he came to stand in front of her, over her, and she reached up with a shaking hand to touch his cheek.

"This is real?" Her words were a near whisper and she thought she may have imagined his shudder under her hand as it drifted to his smooth jaw.

He stepped closer, black hair created a curtain around their faces as his lips ghosted the word 'yes' across hers. She shivered at the pure need that pulsed inside her. Her chest brushed against him and he came closer, taking all of her personal space and throwing it out the window.

Large hands immediately grasped her hips, eyes like jet never leaving hers, she felt like he was trying to see into her soul. His thumbs rubbed against her hips and she shifted a bit, drew herself even closer- if it could be believed- every inch of their bodies touched as she came up onto her toes and finally their lips met again.

The kiss was as shocking as the first, sent pulses through her as he seized control. She hadn't missed the trend, he would allow her to choose whether or not they kissed but beyond that he wanted the power. She supposed she was a little more than happy to relinquish it as he claimed her mouth with his, stole a moan from her lips with a throaty grunt of his own as they parted for him. His tongue explored, danced with hers before his mouth drew back to nip at her lower lip, her jaw line, little kisses and nips trailed down her throat.

He kissed and explored the space just behind her ear and nipped at her neck, her breaths came rapid as she grasped at his frock coat. Fingers danced across the buttons, loosing one here and there until finally the fabric hung loose around him. She found her way under his white dress shirt next and he worked her back toward the bed with a groan.

Hands grasped at her lower back as he lowered her gently to the bed, careful as if she were porcelain and she smiled as his lips claimed hers once more. Her eyes snapped open when his hands found their way under her shirt and he grasped a tender breast in his hand. Her gasp made him smirk into the kiss as he pulled back to look into her eyes.

She looked a bit nervous and he gave her an earnest smile.

"No further than you're ready for, my dear." He comforted, she gave him a nervous smile and pulled his face back down to hers. His hand left her breast to tangle in her hair and he rolled them so they lay on their sides.

Heated fervor turned into small pecks and soon he lay staring at her restful face, forehead against hers. He draped his arm across her waist and pulled her body flush with his. She gave a little groan and buried her face in his chest, hands grasped each side of his unbuttoned frock coat.

He kicked his boots off the edge of the bed and winced at the heavy 'thunk' they made against the floor before he worked her own lace-less shoes off of her feet with his toes. He thought it quite comical but really didn't want to disturb her slumber.

He was satisfied when her second shoe fell off of the bed with a light 'thud' and gingerly covered them with the throw blanket that rested at the foot of the bed.

Much of the night he dozed off and on, waking to check on the sleeping witch in his arms before finding her status satisfactory and drifting back into a deep sleep.

 


	16. Starlight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Adult Content.
> 
> Don't own the Harry Potter universe or Snape or Hermione. All the glory goes to JK Rowling, the visionary behind the enchanting world.

_Starlight_

Hermione sighed as she sank back into one of Severus' plush couches, he and Draco had gone off to talk privately and left Ginny and herself twiddling their thumbs.

"So, you and the bat huh?" Ginny smirked, Hermione looked better, healthier. The color in her cheeks had returned over the last several weeks and her eyes had their sparkle back. She was putting on weight and starting to look more like a woman and less like a skeleton, much to Ginny's pleasure.

"Very handsome bat isn't he?" Hermione grinned, both giggled at their own private joke before they settled back into a comfortable silence.  
"So when are you telling Molly about the," Hermione looked pointedly at Ginny's stomach, she was glowing and couldn't keep her hands away, it was obvious what it meant.

"How did you know!?" She gasped, "I haven't even managed to tell Draco yet." She looked pensive for a moment.

"You're very obvious, a wonder the world hasn't figured it out." Hermione laughed, Ginny scowled but couldn't stop the smile from breaking across her face.

"I'll tell Mum after I figure out how to tell Draco."

"Tell Draco what?" Ginny froze as said blonde stepped up behind her, leaned against the back of the couch.

Hermione stifled a laugh behind her hand. She'd all but moved in with Severus over the past several weeks and Draco and Ginny had essentially taken over her flat. She'd just given them permission to redecorate that day and planned to gather the last of her clothing later that evening.

Her eyes drifted to her very handsome dark wizard and let her eyes drift down the length of his body. He looked stern as ever, she'd grown very much accustomed to that.

"I think we should talk about this at home Dray." Draco looked stunned at the nickname, it only came out when Ginny did something that may make him unhappy. He raised an eyebrow and came around to help her up from the couch.

"Well, then I suppose we should take our leave. Godfather," he gave a polite nod, "'Mione," a hug for Hermione. Severus came to sit beside her when the pair was gone and put his arm around her to pull her into his side.

She breathed him in, herbs, and potions, parchment, and something very indescribably masculine and just _him._ She pecked a kiss just beneath his jaw and smiled softly when he looked down at her from the corner of his eye.

They sat like that for a long time, Hermione curled under his arm and into his side, her legs tucked beneath her as she devoured the latest book they'd gone off after. He read his own book, pausing to look down at her every so often.

The looks didn't go unnoticed but she didn't say anything, she'd grown accustomed to him checking on her, as if to see if she was still there.

"Hermione," he caught her attention with her name and she looked up at him from beneath her lashes, book closed in her lap to give him her undivided attention.

It was the little things like that, her undivided attention, her random acts of affection, they were the things that stirred his heart and made him realize he had found his witch. The one witch who would accept him no matter what, love him with the same passion he loved with.

He'd been planning to ask her what she would like for dinner, when she would like to leave to collect her things, instead what tumbled from his mouth shocked them both.

"Marry me, witch." He breathed.

She stifled her laughter with her palm to her mouth, "Was that supposed to be a proposal, Severus?"

He smirked, "That depends."

Despite the confident mask across his face she could see his hesitance in his eyes. He was cursing himself for saying it inside, he was disappointed in himself for allowing the words to escape his mouth.

"Well, I don't suppose I have much choice." She sighed, teasing him a bit, she turned to face him completely, eyes sparkling.

His face fell into his usual emotionless mask and she almost sighed at him, almost.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" He near snarled.

Her hand fell onto his chest, fingers parted across the beautiful onyx buttons of his frock coat.

"It is supposed to mean," he looked away from her, not ready to take another emotional blow from a woman. She brought a hand up to his smooth cheek, forced him to face her, look into her eyes. "That there is no other man I could possibly love as much as I do you, I could never marry anyone but you. Silly man."

Her smile was soft, that playful twinkle gone to something else.

"Wicked little witch." His voice was low, and sensual as he leaned down to capture her lips with his. The kiss started slow and loving.

However as with all things between them the passion grew and their mouths moved with fervor. She moaned when he nipped at her lip and worked his way down her jaw, her neck. He pulled her shirt aside with slender fingers and his mouth blazed a path across her shoulder.

She gasped, her eyes fell closed as he leaned her back into the couch, his body hovered over hers. Her hips bucked with each nip, each kiss pulled a moan from her until she was left panting beneath him.

He pulled back, eyes dark, swirling with lust as he stared down at her. They stole her breath for a moment and it was all she could do not to come apart right there.

"Take me to the bedroom." She gasped out, it was all she could think. She was ready, had been for a while, though she hadn't wanted to admit it.

She didn't have to ask him twice as he stood from his position over her and swept her up into his arms. His lips were on hers and distracted from the swirl as they landed with a 'pop' in their bedroom.

She squealed when he tossed her onto the bed and climbed over her, their lips reattaching as if they needed the contact to survive. Her fingers worked the buttons of his frock coat, popped loose his cravat and soon he wore only trousers.

They parted and he pulled the loose sundress she'd worn that day from her body and she was beneath him in just a little pair of lacy knickers. Her eyes twinkled as he took in the swell of her perky little breasts before his mouth descended upon the dark peeks that topped them.

She moaned and twined her fingers into dark hair, eyes closing as she allowed the sensations to carry her away. He groaned atop her and her fingers left his hair to push him back by his shoulders. He couldn't help his questioning look as she pushed him back onto the bed and came up onto her hands and knees.

A wicked little smile took her lips as they came down to his chest, teeth nipping and tongue swirling as she worked her way down to the line of his trousers.

"Let's see what we have here, shall we?" She raised her eyebrows suggestively as her fingers worked the buttons of his trousers. He groaned and pushed up on his elbows.

"Not yet witch." His voice was husky and brought a chill down her spine, he sat up and grasped her by her arms to pull her flush with his chest. She squeaked at the sudden movement but it was immediately muted by his mouth as it fell onto hers and he flipped them again, relocating her to the bottom.

Her fingers had worked the button loose between them and her cool fingertips were working the fabric of his trousers down. He pulled back to look down at her swollen lips and smirked.

"I want to hear you scream first," his mouth took the side of her slender neck again, kissing, sucking, drawing long moans from her as his fingers found the lacy edge of her knickers. Immediately the tips twitched below and parted her lips, she gasped when he found the little bundle of nerves and he smirked into her neck. "Not quite there yet." He hummed into her throat.

His mouth worked its way tantalizingly slow up her neck to her jaw and finally her mouth, capturing her in another heated kiss as his fingers worked her. Soon one long finger slipped inside and she let out a startled gasp as she grabbed onto his shoulders.

He stilled for a moment, let her wiggle and adjust to the feeling before he began to work her again. "You like the way my fingers fuck you, don't you witch?" Her eyes flicked open to see his own wicked black eyes staring down at her as another finger slipped inside. She cried out, caught somewhere between a moan and a plea as his voice wrapped around her.

"Severus!" She shouted when he freed his fingers of her and removed the thin lacy fabric from her lower half. Her eyes were heavy lidded as he stared down at her, a wicked smirk when he licked his fingers clean. Her eyes widened in shock as heat pooled between her thighs, tight and pulsing.

He came down, mouth beside her ear, his hot breath forced a shudder. "Such a sweet, wanton little witch aren't we?" His voice was throaty, wicked. Her eyes closed again and he took the opportunity to relieve himself of his trousers.

She could feel his erection, firm, moist at the tip against her thigh and couldn't help but peek.

Another smirk at her curiosity as he stared down at her.

"You will have plenty of time to become acquainted, but now, if you are sure?" He positioned himself between her thighs, gave her a chance to back out. It was now or never after all.

She bit her already abused bottom lip as she stared up at him and gave a little nod.

He cupped a hand to her cheek and slipped in slowly with a groan, she winced, wiggled a bit when he stilled, and then rolled her hips.

She was satisfied when this roll forced a grunt from him and he edged his hips closer. She rolled again, spurred him on.

They moved in perfect sync, their breaths, moans, cries mingling into the air of the room as she tightened her thighs around his hips.

She stared at him for a moment, entranced by his almost ethereal beauty as he moved above her, face completely open and filled with raw emotion.

His eyes opened and there was so much love there. His fingers came down to pinch that sweet little bundle of nerves and she came shuddering around him, spurring his own orgasm.

Hermione wrapped in his arms later that night they stared at the stars through their open window.

Severus kissed the top of her head and she sighed contentedly.

"Almost dying was the best thing that has ever happened to me." He said thoughtfully after a few moments and she tugged the hand on her front up to her lips, kissed it gently.

"At the time I thought it was the worst thing that had ever happened to me, but now, I think I'd have to agree." She hummed sleepily, her eyes drifted closed.

He kissed the back of her head again and took in that sweet scent of vanilla and citrus.

For the first time in forever he looked to his future, and it was wonderful.

ღEndღ

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you've all enjoyed my little story! Thanks so much for reading!


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